the gentleman from michigan seek recognition? as unanimous consent that in the engrossment of the bill h.r. 624, the clerk be authoriz to make such technical and conforming changes as necessary to reflect the actions of the house. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. for what purpose does the gentleman from michigan seek recognition? mr. rogers: thank you, mr. speake i ask unanimous consent that exchanges of correspondent -- correspondentens between the permanent select committee on intelligence, judiciary committee, and homeland security be inserted at this point in the record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from maryland seek recognition? mr. hoyer: i ask unanimous consent to speak out of order for one minute for the purposes of inquiring of the majority leader the schedule for the book to come -- for the week to come. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. hoyer: i'm pleased to yield to my friend, mr. cantor, the majority leader. mr. cantor: i thank the gentleman from maryland, the democratic whip, for yielding. mr. speaker, on monday the house is not in session. on tuesday the house will meet at noon for morning hour and 2:00 p.m. for legislative business. votes will be postponed until 6:30 p.m. on wednesday and thursday, the house will meet at 10:00 arc m. for morning hour and noon for legislative business. on friday, the house will meet at 9:00 a.m. for legislative business. last votes of the week

expected no later than 3:00 p.m. mr. speaker, the house will consider a few suspensions on tuesday and wednesday, a complete list of which will be announced by the close of business tomorrow. other suspensions i'm proud to announce that the house will esentive t sewell to award the congresonal gold dal who heir l i bombing of the 16th street baptist church ibirmingham 50 years ago which served as a catalyst for the civil rights movement. in addition, mr. speaker, we'll take up h.r. 1549, the helping sick americans now act. this bill authored by representatives joe pitts, michael burgess, and ann wagner, will help americans with pre-existing conditions obtain insurance coverage without delay. we'll also consider h.r. 527, the responsible helium administration and stewardship act, a bipartisan bill sponsored by chairman hastings.

this legislation applies free market principles to future sales from the federal helium reserve and will protect thousands of american jobs. i thank the gentleman. i yield back. mr. hoyer: i thank the majority leader for the information for next week. i would observe that he and i co-chaired, honorary co-chairs, john lewis the chair, our leader, along with terry sewell and spencer bachus and congresswoman roby, delegation, to march across the ed mupped pet tiss bridge to recognize -- edmund pettus bridge to recognize the voting rights act and the acts that led up to that. the goad medal bill, the majority leader is bringing ngresswoman sewell, y recognizing those four little girls who at the birmingham church lost their lives to what was frightfully referred to i

think as a terrorist act, a bomb going off with no specific objective in mind other than to kill people inside that church. the little girls were the closest to that explosion, and lost their lives. as the majority leader pointed out, that event and the events that he occurred in the square just across the street from the church led to this country living out its principles better than it had done to that date. but some lost their lives, these four little girls, and some gave dearly. i thank the majority leader for facilitating that bill coming to the floor. . leader, i noted on the schedule, however, that there is no motion to go to conference.

as the gentleman knows -- on the budget. as the gentleman knows the senate, which the house has been requesting for some years now, has passed budget. the use and it is ripe for us to go to conference. the gentleman, the speaker, and others have been talking about regular order for some period of time. i agree with them. regular order leads to better results. regular order leads to an ability to sit down and try to come to compromises on where there are differences. and to make progress. i would hope that we would follow regular order and now that the senate has acted, speaker boehner in january of this year said regular order works best. i think he was absolutely right. and there is a head line in

"politico" a couple days ago where it says, g.o.p. clamors for regular order. speaker boehner said in december 8, 2011, the house has passed its bill. the bill we had passed. now the senate has passed its bill. you know under the constitution, we have these disagreements, there could be a formal conference between the house and senate to resolve our differences. you said that same year we have committed and the speaker's committed to making sure our committees will go through regular order. paul ryan, the chairman of the budget committee, on november 29 of 2010 said, we are going to restore regular order. i think you were correct in all those instances. i want to associate myself with those remarks. now we have an opportunity for regular order.

and we are going to be meeting next week and then we'll be taking off a week. and that is all time we could be working to try to get to an agreement he so we could not only have an agreement, which the country i think would welcome, but we could also i think substitute that agreement for the sequester, which is currently having and will have a very, very negative effect on our economy, on jobs, and on the confidence that americans have that we are pursuing rational policy. the the gentleman and i both have agreed that sequester is not a rational policy. it deals with high priority and low priority items in very much the same way. so my question, mr. leader, is there a possibility, not on the calendar, you didn't announc it, bui w you that we go to conference, preferably,

the first day we are back, after this weekend, so that we could get to work on trying to get to an agreement on one of the most pressing problems in front of this country, and that's getting ourselves on a fiscally sustainable path. i yield to my friend. mr. cantor: i thank the gentleman. i appreciate the spirit with which he recommends that we proceed along the lines of those individuals that he spoke about had asked for. and i would say to the gentleman, mr. speaker, that i'm told that our chairman and the chairman on the other side of the capitol, ms. murry, they are meeting and looking to see the path forward so that we can affect the meeting of the minds and do what the american people are asking us to do, which is to get the fiscal challenges addressed at the federal level so they can go maki

word o create their dreams and live the life that they want and have the life they want for their kids. i yield back. mr. hoyer: i thank the gentleman for his comments. i want to say i have a lot of respect as the gentleman knows, i haveessed on this floor, for mr. ryan. i think mr. ryan is aery able nd dedicated and consciencious member of this house. i have equal respect for and confidence in senator murray who chairs the senate budget committee. while i am appreciative of the fact they are having discussions, very frankly the american people need to have a transparent view of discussions that would occur in a conference committee, so not only would the chair of the house budget committee and the chair of the senate budget committee, that implies therefore that in the senate there are no republicans participating in those discussions, and in the house there are no democrats

participating in those discussions. in light of the fact that we have 315 million people represented by democrats and republicans, i think it would be very useful and would accelerate not impede the process of getting to an agreement so the american public could weigh in with their views. -- views as they saw a conference committee debating and discussing the alternatives between the ryan budget and the murray budget and indeed the president's budget. . i know i've seen press reports that mr. ryan wants to have discussions and he wants to have parameters but frankly you and i both know that if we wait to have mr. ryan and senator mugree, we'l probably be waiting a long me th of them, leasten murray, participated along with jeb hensarling, in the supercommittee which met for many months and ultimately came

to no conclusion. that's not good for the country. it's not good for our economy. it's not good for jobs and growth. so i understand that mr. ryan said he's having discussions with senator murray, but i would urge us to have the ability to go to conference, move to about to conference, appoint conferees and pursue regular order. if the gentleman wants to respond to that, if not i'll go on to another subject. mr. speaker, -- mr. leader, i don't think it was on the announcement, but i do know there is discussion in your mumda, and you've been quote -- memoranda, and you've been quoted for a debt ceiling piece of legislation that would be considered. i would hope, as i said last week, that we could deal with in a nonpartisan, bipartisan, nonpolitical fashion the protection of the credit

worthiness of the united states of america and to the maintenance of america's credit rating. it was reduced for the first time in history when we had a debt cliff debate in 2011, and we were reduced by one point in the credit worthiness of our country. that was unfortunate for our country. president reagan said in 1986, unfortunately congress consistently brings the government to the edge of default before facing its responsibility. this brinksmanship threatens the holders of government bonds and those who rely on veterans' benefits, interest rates, etc., would skyrocket if we did that. he was then urging the democratic congress and republicans to support the increase in the debt, which as you know, was done. in addition, keith hennessey who was george bush's national director counsel, payment

prioritization doesn't stop payments, it just delays them. then the party sues the government and wins and it turns into a bloody mess. that was president bush keith hennessey, who was bush national economic council director. the deputy press secretary for george bush said, prioritization is impossible. prioritization is impossible. i repeat that. is the government really going to be in a position to withholding salaries, rents, etc., in order to pay off treasury bondholders? that would be a political catastrophe. i wouldst not only would it be a political catastrophe, which i agree, and i presume he's referring to the republican party, he's a member of the republican party, but also a disaster for our economy .

and if not i think something that would be helpful in growing jobs and expanding confidence, which the gentleman's talked a lot about and with which i agree with him on. we need confidence. and this constant utilization of the debt limit for political leverage i think is not in the best interest of our country or the people we represent. and i would hope that bill would not be brought to the floor but we could together in a fashion resolve that the debt limit will not be put in question by this congress, and i yield to my friend. mr. cantor: mr. speaker, i thank the gentleman for his desire to see satisfactory resolution of issues surrounding the fiscal challenges. obviously the debt ceiling is another point of which we will face with how to deal with the spiraling debt and out-of-control spending in washington, and i know the h desire to see the reduction i

the need to borrow, the balancing of our budget and actually a return to a real growth in america of jobs, of the economy, of economic opportunity for all. and it is in that spirit that i know that he approaches this issue and so do i and i would say to the gentleman, when the rating agencies look at the credit worthiness of our nation -- and i think some of which have said as much -- it is, yes, to observe a political system that works, but it is also to make sure that there is demonstrable evidence that we are making progress in dealing with the problem. and that is the focus that we must all maintain. i mean, we know that the dispr portionate problem of the debt

-- disproportionate problem of the debt have to deal with the unfunded liabilities of the entitlement programs. and we can see the white house and the president call for tax increases every other day, every day for that matter, and those are mott going to deal with -- not going to deal with the spiraling out-of-control spending that rawses the need for more debt -- raises the need for more debt. again, the differences on this subject, mr. speaker, are well-known, and i'm hopeful that we can work towards setting aside the differences, focusing in on how far we can rk towards accomplishing cc dealing with the problem of the mounting unfunded liabilities of the federal government. i yield back. . ha the gentleman for his observation. let me, if i can, some irony in the gentleman's response. we've been talking about two items. one, the going to conference, i

eal with prospective spending, prospective increase in debt or deficit because we buy more or spend more or cut revenues more. the debt limit, as the gentleman so well knows, deals with what we've already done. doesn't have anything to do with increasing what we're going to spend. the budget does that. now, we're not dealing with the budget, but there is discussion dealing with this prioritization. frankly, we should have made that determination when we spent the money, and both sides have spent a lot of money. our country is determined to spend a lot of money. two wars cost us a lot of money we didn't pay for. i'm not going through the litany. the gentleman knows that litany, but somewhat ironic, when we're not dealing going to conference on the budget deficit but we're talking about prioritization of the debt we've already incurred, i think the american public understand that raising the simply awh

we've already done and that we're going to pay our bills. we're not going to welch, we're not going to default. the most credit worthy nation on earth is going to pay for what it bought. so i would urge the gentleman to not to prioritization but let's deal with raising the debt limit so we pay our bills and go to conference so we can make sure that in fact we keep that debt from going higher and in fact decrease it through reforms that we can adopt in a budget conference. i would hope the gentleman would agree with that. if he wants to respond, i'll yield to him. if not i'll yield back. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the . ntleman yields back for what purpose does the gentleman from virginia recognition? mr. cantor: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent that when the house adjourns today it adjourn to meet at 11:00 a.m. tomorrow. and when the house adjourns on

that day, it adjourn to meet on tuesday, april 23, 2013, when it shall convene at noon for morning hour debate and 2:00 p.m. for legislative business. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. the chair will entertain requests for one-minute peeches. for what purpose does the gentleman from nebraska seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. >> mr. speaker, we are all still reeling from the senseless violence that was perpetrated onto the community of boston. i live a long way from boston, but like many americans, i'm trying to make sense of the senseless. how can someone so cowardly kill with such randomness,

targeting innocent people who just wanted to enjoy a great american tradition and a great -- in a great american city. mr. fortenberry: last night i read a "boston globe" article, a father and a daughter were in they heard e when the explosion. she wanted to leap over a barricade. the police then yelled at her to stop but she yelled, i am a peed at rick doctor. you have -- pediatric doctor. you have to let me through. and she treated the wounded. her father tended to an elderly man that had no pulse and was experiencing hypothermia. both natalie and joe are nebraskans, good americans who reacted with great selflessness in the midst of great tragedy. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. foat pse ds the gentleman fromewseitio

foone nu and to the speaker pro tempore: without objection. >> thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, one house in my central new york district has been working to end domestic violence in the area for 35 years. each year we come together during the white ribbon campaign to show our support for vera house's important work. vera house provides critical resources for victims of sexual violence in central new york. it ensures that all receive the care, counseling and adequacy they need and deserve. mr. maffei: it offers counseling for children, and adult survivors of rape and sexual abuse and violence prevention education. vera house is and many organizations like it across our country need our continued support. an estimated 1.3 million people are victims of domestic violence every year, men and women, straight, gay, transgendered and so many

children. nearly 7.8 million women have been raped by an intimate partner at some point in their lives. mr. speaker, each year vera house serves about 1,050 survivors of sexual assault, domestic violence and other crimes. vera house's counseling program helps over 700 impacted by domestic and sexual violence. the white ribbon campaign asks people to wear a white ribbon as a symbol of awareness and solidarity with all those affected by domestic violence. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. for what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania rise? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. wiout objection.mpore: maker, today is a very imanday to us. onmonday, april 15, it was tax day and our tax code is way too big, way too complicated, way too confusing and way too costly. americans spend a combined $6.7 billion on their taxes every year and pay a combined total $168 billion just to comply with tax rules.

i ran a business all my life. i know full well the burdensome of tax regulation, it slows hiring, it slows productivity and it slows growth. our tax code is a 70,000-page spiderweb that is unfairly trapping american workers, american families and american business. mr. kelly: as well as the american economy. and it's time to set them free. today, april 18, is tax freedom day. look, it's time for us to simplify the rules, lower the rates, close the loopholes. a fair, freer, simpler tax code will allow all taxpayers to save money, save our -- let our economy thrive and allow new jobs to flourish. and in the end all america wins. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. for what purpose does the gentleman, my friend from texas, rise? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection.

>> mr. speaker, i rise today to explain my no vote on cispa. there's no doubt that congress must act to improve cybersecurity and combat ongoing cyberthreats. legislate out of fear or sacrifice privacy in the name of security. despite improvements, the bill contains unacceptable threats to privacy and lacks adequate safeguards and accountability. i am opposed to allowing private companies to share personal information with other companies and the government without making reasonable efforts to remove personally identifiable information. . if congress does not require companies to make these efforts, they will not do so. in addition, private entities will operate with immunity under this legislation and the people i represent will have no recourse should their privacy be violated. the changes made to the bill did not address this underlying problem and i could not vote for it. we can fix these shortcomings and we should. let's improve cybersecurity and

protect the privacy rights of the people that we are so honored to represent. and with that, mr. speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. for what purpose does the gentleman from ohio rise? mr. chabot: i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. chabot: mr. speaker, it's with a heavy heart i rise today to mourn the loss of a dear friend, mrs. barbara wilke, of cincinnati, ohio. she along with her husband, dr. jack wilke, co-founded cincinnati right to life. she died peacefully at the age of 90 this past sunday and leaves behind her husband, six children, 20 grandchildren, and several foster children. during the early years of the national debate on abortion, she recognized the injustice of abortion on demand and held steadfastly to her belief that life is a gift from god. i first met barb and her husband

nearly 35 years ago and have worked closely with them to protect innocent unborn children ever since. for eight years i worked with them on legislation to ban the horrific practice of partial-birth abortion. with their significant help and influence, the partial-birth abortion ban act passed congress, was signed into law by president bush, was upheld by the united states supreme court on a 5-4 vote, and is now the law of the land. despite her passing, her legacy and good works will live on. god bless barbara wilke. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. for what purpose does the wiobction.from new york rise? mr. elliott: thank you,since an

silence resolution earlier today. ined naty of this is a day in which students from around the country rise to show their solidarity with gay, lesbian, transgender, and bisexual students who suffer abuse and harassment and are bullied solely because of their sexual orientation and gender identity. i will use this one-minute speech to observe a moment of silence to let all of those children know i stand with them, that they are not alone, and that it gets better. thank you, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. for what purpose does the gentleman from ohio rise? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. >> mr. speaker, i stand before you today with great sadness. this weekend movement on behalf of life lost a passionate leader, barbara wilke, for over

four decades barbara and her husband were an unstonnable force for life, they joined together to author books, craft teaching materials, and give lectures in 64 countries all to promote sanctity of life. in 1971 they founded right to life of creater cincinnati. one of the first organizations of its kind. this le loving organization continues to thrive in no small part due to their effortser the years. mr. women strup: in addition to being a pioneer of the pro-life movement, barbara was a nurse, mother, foster parent, grandmother, and devoted wife. she and john would have celebrated their 65th wedding anniversary this summer. barbara's influence lives on through the lives she touched, especially those she protected. it's my honor to be one of the many people who will keep her legacy alive by defending our most vulnerable, the unborn. as she did for so many years. fod bless barbara and -- god

bless barbara and may she rest in peace. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. for what purpose does the gentleman from arizona rise? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. grijalva: i rise today as a member of the safe harbor caucus. primarily because of overal he location, the colorado river is at the top of the list. this is a challenging place to be. across our region 34 million people rely on the colorado river for drinking water, that includes cities like las vegas, los angeles, and phoenix. it snakes through the grand canyon and is truly the lifeblood of arizona. that's why i continue to advocate for federal solutions to threats from uranium mining and other sources of contamination. but the real threat and the most serious threat is climate change, to the health of this river, and thatd t be

ignored. scientists predict change will reduce the colorado river's flow by u 30% by 2050. threatening all those communities, all those resources, including recreation and agriculture. we need proactive solutions, we need strategies that manage and mitigate climate change anti-impacts of climate change. the majority has to deal with this question. it cannot be ignored. the safe climate caucus looks forward to the opportunity and for the sake of the colorado river, that debate needs to happen. yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. for what purpose does the gentleman from texas rise? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. poe: mr. speaker, it was around 8:00 p.m. last night as the sun was setting when a historically czech community of

west texas families were finishing supper and winding down the day. sudden suddenly the tiny town of 2,600 was shaken by a massive explosion by the nearby fertilizer plant, equivalent to 2.3 on the richter scale. the fiery blast was so strong it was described by west mayor tommy as a nuclear bomb going off. my daughter and her family were in church about 50 miles away when they felt the shock. in fact, three firefighters took off and were headed straight for the town of west. homes were set ablaze and flattened to the earth. the senioritizens home has many citizens in the town were trapped in their homes, others were stranded on the street covered with blood and no place when disaster struck, first responders, firefighters, e.m.s. volunteers, and citizens traveled from all over texas headed to the town of west. for those of us in texas this is not a surprise.

texans always take care of texans. so many firefighters came to west that the officials said there were too many and no more assistance was needed. mr. speaker, hundreds of people are ininjured, up to 70 feared dead, many accounted for as the police go door to door looking for survivors. as the misty rain settles on the town of west, our prayers go out to the people of this wonderful community. that's just the way it is. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. for what purpose does the gentleman from california rise? >> to address the house for one minute. revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. >> mr. speaker, i rise today in honor of the national day of silence. mr. farr: tomorrow is the 16th year we commemorated the national day of silence. a time when students across the country remain silent for the whole day to draw attention to the discrimination toward their lgbt pearce. the national day of silence is important for many reasons.

to letur youth know that they en't alone. that there are plenty of people upport them just the way they are. as my constituent, heide, a senior in high school ts it, quote, the national day of silence is an important -- is important to me because it's a day when you see all the support for the silent ones that nobody is alone in anything, unquote. i'm proud of my constituents who are calling for a stop in harassment of lgbt individuals. i'm particularly proud of my constituents in watsonville and from the high school for hosting he 16th annual queer youth leadership awards. for many lgbt advocates and their allies, their silence tomorrow, we in congress must never be silent. it is our job to speak for those who cannot speak for themselves. another of my constituents, molly, an alternative family education in santa cruz says it best, quote, the national day of

silence is important to me because sometimes silence speaks louder than words. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. for what purpose does the gentleman from new york rise? >> to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. >> mr. speaker, no one should fight for their country oy toe their government. but that's exactly what's happening th disa veterans todaywho e waiting far too long to have their claims processed by the v.a. there are right now thousands of folks in my home state of new york and in the hudson valley who are waiting on average over 400 days to have their claims processed. that's a year and a half. that's wrong and we can do bert by our veterans.

i know one veteran who served his country in vietnam, he came home, filed a disability claim just in february of 2011. but that was 800 days ago and he's still waiting for an answer. he said to me, sean, i just need an answer so i can decide whether i'm going to have to sell my house because i don't want to have it foreclosed. mr. maloney: think about how disgraceful that is. we need to give him an answer sooner, and there is a solution. i rerecently introduced the disabled veterans red tape deficit reduction act. this is a simple idea that would allow veterans to go to doctors outside the v.a. system to get their claims processed. it would speed it up. but this program is at risk right now. a program that 20% of all veterans use, because the last congress failed to re-authorize it. i urge my colleagues to support this measure for another five years. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. man eorgiae?pose does t >> to revis my e d remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without

objection. mr. johnson: mr. speaker, today i have introduced two bills to help small businesses. we all like to talk about how small business are the engine of our economy, small businesses, and that's because that is true. that's why i will -- i have introduced the help entrepreneurs create american jobs act, which is a bipartisan bill to double the deduction for start-up expenses to encourage entrepreneurs to start a business and create jobs. i'll also introduce the fairness this transparency and contracting act to ensure that only small businesses, actual small businesses receive federal small business contracts. mr. speaker, these bills are the least that we can do to give our economy a shot in the arm. i yield back my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time.

for what purpose does the gentleman from rhode island rise? mr. cicilline: i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. speaker, i rise today to recognize the national day of silence which is coordinated nationally by the gay, lesbian, and straight education network. and organizers across our country to take a vow of silence that many lgbt youth encounter in their schools. i'm proud to join congressman engel from new york to introduce a resolution today to support the goals of the national day of silence and i will continue to work in this chamber to raise awareness about this ongoing problem. ask the house now join me in observing a moment of silence for lgbt youth who are victims of violence across this country. and as a symbol of our commitment to guarantee that every child in america can study and learn in a safe environment.

thank you, mr. speaker. with that i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. for what purpose does the gentlelady from illinois rise? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. >> i rise today to talk about the recent passing of dick falla, a great friend to working men and women of illinois and iowa, and a great ally to american workers. dick spent his life fighting to improve the lives of others. he was a tireless and passionate advocate for working families and true champion for civil rights. st's a lifel heght for

local d national leader on half of the american worker he showed up at every labor rally, pickett line, and civil rights event. rain, snow, heat, old age, and sickness. nothing could deter dick from fighting on he behalf of working people. he was a rousing public speaker and inspired generations of illinoisans and iowans to get involved in public service. i know my husband, jerry, and i extend our condolences to dick's family. he will truly be missed. thank you, mr. speaker and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. the chair lays before the house the following personal equests. without objection, the request s granted.

under the speaker's announced policy of january 3, 2013, the gentleman from oklahoma, mr. lankford, is recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the majority leader. mr. lankford: thank you, mr. speaker. this is a conversation about something that's very pertinent thth taxes.a obviously this is tax week, which is punctuated by an incredibly difficult day in boston. this is also tax freedom day that's happening april work their entire year they could get to this point. for many areas of the country, this is the day they are paying in their tfedel vernme or state and local treasury. this is different from area to area. this shows the significance of what it really means to get to

a point like this where we have to look again at our tax code. today is the day just to be able to pause and say, where are we with our tax code and where are we with our budget? let me highlight a couple things and i have several colleagues that i will yield to continue this conversation. it's a conversation about our budget, rightfully so. we are over $1 trillion overspending this year, the same as we did the year before, the year before and the year before. now, for the fifth year in a row, something has happened that's never happened ever in american history. we overspent the budget by $1 trillion. let me set aside something else or people to look at, and that is this year in the federal treasury we will receive the highest amount of tax revenue ever in the history of the united states treasury. we will receive more revenue this year than we ever have in the history of the united states government. yet, we're still overspending $1 trillion. we have serious budget issues,

but they're not tax revenue as far as how much is coming in issues. it's overspending. but our issue with taxes is not the issue of the tax rate not necessarily having enough. it's the issue of how we do it. it's such a convoluted mess to be able to go through our thousands and thousands of pages of tax code. we need to stop and be able to evalte ts. is this really the t wa do this? the purpose of taxation is to x lentleo ru an efficient government. is that really what we're doing in our tax code right now? why t a simple system in do people spend billions of dollars across america and millions of hours trying to fill out tax forms and to be able to get it on time so when you turn it in no one things they turned it in correctly. no one. the challenge is how can we get to real tax reform to be able to solve many of the tax issues, to be able to benefit

our nation and what happens in the days ahead and especially our businesses that need so much help and would like to have the relief of the burden that they have to go through all this convoluted tax policy. let me introduce one of my dear friends, tom reed from new york, he's a heb of the ways and means committee. leave and breaths the tax code and is trying to walk us through the process of reforming the tax code. mr. reed: i thank my friend from oklahoma for having this important topic tonight. mr. speaker, i believe in america that is fair. i believe in america where the rules are simple so that hardworking taxpayers in understand what those rules are and they are not subject to the jeopardy of violating the rules because they're too complicated. i bieicwh's not judging wh ey anobut rather who they are.

mr. speaker, while i start my conversation tonight with those beliefs it's because we need to apply those beliefs to getting rid of this broken, complicated tax code that we have in america. what we have is a code that is not simple, that is not fair, that is way too complicated. that's why i believe in going through commonsense tax reform for the purposes of coming up with a simple, fair and reasonable tax code so that people can fill out their own taxes -- as my colleague from oklahoma rightfully points out. people are spending billions of dollars to tax preparers, third parties, millions of hours that otherwise could go to their businesses or families to fill out a tax return that they can't understand because the rules are too complicated. also, we have to end what we came here to washington, d.c. to do. in part, my colleague from oklahoma and myself, of this

freshman class in november, 2010, and that is having our country under the control of the special interests and creating those lop holes in the tax code -- loopholes in the tax code that go to tailered people because of who they know. we want a tax code. i want a tax code and i know my colleagues on the ways and means committee want a tax code that promotes growth, that promotes economic opportunity, that promotes the opportunity for us to be competitive on the de beuse when america competes on a world stage in a competitive market, we win. we have the best workers. we have the best technology. we have freedom. we have the rule of law. we need to do commonsense tax reform for the purposes of putting us in a position where we can create the jobs today and for generations to come because we will then create a fair, level playing field that allows us to start building things in america, allows us to

put people to work for generations to come. so i appreciate my good friend from oklahoma bringing this issue to the forefront and having this conversation tonight. and i know he's bringing forth a copy of the code and the regulations and all you have to do is look at that colossal piece of paper or reams of paper, books of paper, 70,000 pages of statutory tax and regulation. we in america can do better. we as house republicans demand us to do better, and we will do better under the leadership that house republicans are doing in the ways and means committee and as a conference to make sure that we end up with a code that is simple, fair and no longer is riddled with loopholes, big government handouts, big government subsidies. that's the principle of tax reform for the republican side of the aisle. and with that i yield back to my good friend from oklahoma. mr. lankford: thank you.

thank you for those words of encouragement because that's what we're all about. i mean, as simple as this is, everyone would lookx code, to reference where we are on tax policy and how large this has become. we look at our tax policy and say, how did it become this? it became this because we've added one new rule after another after another. just since 2001, there have been 3,250 changes to the tax code. that's more than one per day. and they continue to rack up. in every business, in every american -- and every american has to rush to keep up with all of this tax code which leads to the problem, how do i know that i actually filled it out correctly and completed all this? and for many people, there is this sense that i didn't get a chance to write anything off in deductions, but there are other people that know how to get out of this. and this constant fight to say, how do we fix this? first, we have to get through

some basic definitions. what does it mean to reform the tax code? reforming the tax code -- excuse me -- seems to be a simple thing. that means we'll fix it to make it simpler. we'll make it fair. we'll make it more straightforward. there are some that try to defining the formula to the tax code would be a new way to raise taxes on other people, to take away that deduction or loophole and we'll find ways to keep this same convoluted, crony system of tax code but we'll find some way to do it to raise taxes on different groups renue by raising taxes mplish rather than fixing the system. again, i go back to we have the highest amount of revenue ever in the history of the station. this is not a tax revenue problem of how much is coming in. we have a serious spending problem, but we do have a tax code problem as well that forces businesses to overspend for tax preparation when they should be taking care of customers and clients and their employees. we can do better than all of

this. do better and we should. now, again, there's this sense that within the tax code that if we just create a couple more things that we can fix the tax code or maybe if we raise rates on people that we'll get in more revenue. let me tell you a quick story. my daughter at the school several years ago had a project between the fifth graders and the first graders. it's a study through american history. the first graders and fifth graders both got to the american revolution, obviously at different levels of interest and topics. as they studied through the american revolution, the fifth graders at some point would take the role of the british and the first graders would be the patriots, the americans, the revolutionaries. and what would happen would be the first day of the project -- actually, the week before, i got a note as a parent saying, you need to send 100 pennies with your first grader for next week's class. and all it was aote saying every firstdeeeded 10

pennies. began saying the american a. revolution a midway through the day, the fifth grade class barges into class and say, there is now a tax on sharpening their pencil. they would impose a one penny tax on sharpening the pencil. when you go to lunch, you have to pay another penny now to leave your classroom and go to lunch and there is a one penny tax to get a kleenex as well. several times throughout the course of the day they'd pop in and collect their tax from people. tuesday they came in and doubled their tax. it's now two cents to sharpen your pencil. it's two cents to get a kleenex and two cents to head to lunch. so on wednesday it comes again and they add new things again. so by wednesday night, what my first grader did? my first grader on wednesday night came home and said, dad, i need to take 10 sharpened pencils to school tomorrow.

i said, why? she said, because the tax is so high on sharpening pencils i am going to take sharpened pin sells with me to school -- pencils with me to school. i laughed and said, my first grader knows how to avoid taxes. my first grader knows how to do this. some perception that if we raise rates on people a lot more tax money is going to come in is foolish based on a basic value of when we know it's unir we' find a way to get t om under it. if we had a simple, fair, clean, straightforwar system, we would not fight with this and we would actually receive in the revenue that we should receive in as a nation, a nation does need tax revenue but we need to be efficient, we need to be fair and we need it to be straightforward. we can do this and we should do this. i'd like to take just a brief moment to be able to recognize one of my other colleagues from north carolina. this colleague has a different

topic than tax reform but it's important this week because a mutual person that we have great respect for and he knows personally as well is due of honor in this week of all weeks. so with that i'd like to recognize my colleague from north carolina. >> thank you, mr. speaker. and i thank my colleague, appreciate his leadership both with the policy committee and n this very important issue. mr. mchenry: mr. speaker, i rise today to honor america's most beloved gospel singer. according to the guinness book of world records, he holds the world record for singing in person to more people than anyone in human history, to a cumulative total to a live udience of 220 million people. mr. speaker, i of course am rising to recog gege beverly shea, who pse away

wo days a at the age of 104. bev, as he was affectionately known, began singing with .everend billy graham in 1943 in the following years, he would travel to every state in the union and to every -- nearly every continent on the globe to spread the gospel. he was inducted to the religious broadcasters hall of fame in february of 1996 and was also inducted into the inaugural class of the southern -- of the conference of southern baptist evangelist hall of faith in 2008. from a recent visit with him, i can tell you that such awards weren't the most important things to him in

life. as i visited bev, it was a beautiful day in summer in western north carolina. he lives -- lived, i should say, right down the hill from dr. graham. . he wanted to be close to his friends and that's where he chose to live. as i noticed his pictures of his grandchildren, behind those pictures of his family, i noticed a grammy award. it was a lifetime achievement grammy award given to him in 2010.that was behind his family pictures. very intertibeautil statement from a wonrful person. 2010 when he k in was given the lifetime achievement award, and he was

with the likes of dolly parton and the a moans -- ramons. so it showed he thought family was most important. so despite his worldwide fame, though, friends and residents of his town knew him as a person who was deeply faithful to his lord and savior, showed many kindnesses nd throughout the community. he had a tradition though he was known around the globe, he still took the time every year to sing happy birthday to the mayor of his small town. what a special gentleman. what a special american. what a special christian and man of faith. and while friends and fans from around the world and christians from around the world know him

from his renditions of "how great thou art" and "the wonder of it all" he'll always be remembered by friends and famild as one of most -- one of the most humble and gracious men that's ever been knn. sh was 104, and leaves behind a wonderful blessing of a family. so with that i thank my colleague for yielding and giving me the opportunity to recognize such a significant individual. with that i yield back. mr. lankford: thank you. he is a man worthy of honor. back on tax policy, it seems a mundane topic now compared to bevly shea and all he's done for our nation and the world. did you know under our current system if you own a guard dog to protect your business, or if you hold a business convention in

bermuda, or pay for your child's clarinet lessons so it will help with their overbite, you can deduct those expenses from your income taxes. there is something morally and culturally wrong with a government that enables its citizens to deduct their gambling losses but punishes the same person by taxing their interest that they have savings in the bank. why would we as a nation deduct gambling losses and tax interest savings from the bank? shouldn't we encourage savings and maybe discourage or at least be neutral for gambling losses? that's the nature of this code. there is a section even on this code that specifically outlines that if you are a drug trafficker or drug dealer, you ics bomeduct your expenses f wego find a way to be able to simplify the code and to

make it a fair, straightforward code that deals with the issues. and it takes away the absurdity in our code. let me give you another example of what's completely absurd in our code. we have a tax system dealing with international taxes, and our international tax system we tell people that if you are a business that's an american-owned business, and you do business in other parts of the world, you will pay their tax rate to that country, which is fair, but then when you bring your money back to the united states, you'll also have to pay the difference in our tax rate. we are the only country that does that. so we literally tell our businesses, do business all over the world, function all over the world, make money all over the world, but when you make money over there, we would encourage you to leave that money over there and not bring it back home. because if they bring it back home, they are actually punished for returning money back to the united states. now, what does that mean to american competition and how we actually function in our business world? what that means is if you are a

german company doing business in the u.k., let's say, you pay the taxes for the u.k. and return your money back to headquarters. but if you are an american business doing business in the u.k., you pay the business tax in the u.k. and don't return your money back in america, you reinvest in your u.k. branch because why would you lose all that money coming back to the united states with it? this simple fix would bring back $1 trillion in private american capital from around the world back into the united states. now, in 2009, this congress passed almost a trillion dollar stimulus bill where they took money from each other as americans and try to redistribute it to say that would fix the economy. actually what it did was skyrocketed our debt and we'll be paying for it for generations. it did not resolve our fiscal situation. what would it mean instead of just taking money from americans

and redistributing and pretending we did something, what would it mean to allow private capital to move from all over the world to be able to come back home? it would be significant to us and it's one of those commonsense things when i talk to people they nod their head and say why don't we do that? i say because of this. because it's so difficult to get through our tax code and to fix the things that are obvious. i have even had some people say to me if those american companies bring their stuff back home they'll buy stocks or he reinvest in their building and they'll spend it ow they -- how they want to. it's their money. let them spend it how they choose to spend it but allow them to bring it home. we should encourage american-based companies to bring american money back home when they make it rather than reinvesting all over the world.. it's a commonsense thing to say when you do business, no matter what type of business you are in, don't discriminate if they have normal business expenses,

allow those normal business expenses to be written off and tax on the profit. d oucodes it so convoluted, one business gets taxedifferent than another, and another business, ando one can define just basic simple business exp the code is all so clutt then you see some proposals, li the president's, when he put out his budget when he said normal business expensing should be taken away from any company that does oil or gas or coal and instead we should give special preferences to those that do wind and solar and hydroand other things. in fact it had the audacity to make the statement in the treasury green book, it made the statement that the president want as neutral tax code on energy. i had to laugh. i say, one group of companies that has normal business expensing if they have a cost for a well they are able to deduct it like every other business does for their basic operations, gets punished in

this code, and other companies get triple benefits from it. that's not neutral. that's preferences. that's crony capitalism. i got to say i'm all for all types of energy. really am. my state of oklahoma, we have geothermal, oil, gas, we use coal, wind. we have all kinds of energy, and we use it all extremely well. it's a great solution for us. but the issue is not what do we do on what type of energy, it's where do we put preferences? the code doesn't need to become more convoluted by saying the administration has certain preferences on energy so it's going to make it more expensive for some types and give special crony benefits to others. that's not the way we need to function. we need a code that is straightforward and clean and intentional that we have a certain amount of money that needs to be raised to have basic operation of the federal government and not raise more than that, and definitely not have we have all those than w

giant codes. but instead we should make it more simple. what dwe to do? let's set some basic guidelines. cana de is fair and straightforward? yes. so let's get startedn it. let's start withhe bics. let's not take this code and edit. let's take a blank sheet of paper and say how much does the federal government have to raise to efficiently operate? what is the best tax code to start that process? and begin our reform not by tweaking this, but by fixing it. i know for certain if i went to any american and said, what is the best way to do tax code, no one would point to this. no one would point to our current tax code and say that's the best way to do it. we get that. let's start by fixing it. the second thing is make the tax code as neutral as we can. what can we do to make it simple, neutral, straightforward

that whether you are an american that makes $20,000 a year or whether you are an american that makes $2 million a year you feel like it's fair to you. if there is not some sense of somebody else gets more benefits than i do out of code, it's a simple, straightforward code. so we are going to make it neutral, we are going to make it simple, and we are going to try to make it as efficient as we possibly can. i know the word efficient and federal government don't go together often. but when we start a code, we should start it as simple as we possibly can. the last time it was a major reform of the tax code was in the 1980's. it was to simplify the code. and since that time it has grown more and more and more complex again. i have every belief that we go througe of simply wch dramatically needs reform, we wi simplify ou code again in the days ahead, future congresses will make it more complicated again. that's the nature of government. i understand that.

i'm just saying it's past time to do the simplification again. we need to have significant reform and not reform that's defined as how do we stick it to a certain group to make sure they pay more. reform that's tax reform, that fixes our broken system. and walks americans through a process where they can pay taxes, as we all love to do, that can at least pay taxes in a way they believe is fair and neutral and consistent from year to year. with that i yield back to the speaker the balance of my time and move forward. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. under the speaker's announced policy of january 3, 2013, the chair recognizes the gentleman from texas, mr. poe, for 30 minutes.

mr. poe: thank you, mr. speaker. we approach april 21 this year, that is the dayf portcef uwho are from texas. april 21 in houston when i was growing up was a holiday. my mother, who was also born on april 21, my sister that we had a school holiday because it was her birthday. i didn't learn that wasn't correct until i got to 7th grade texas history. when i learned that april 21st was to commemorate a battle that took place in texas which we now call sana'a is intera day. most americans never heard of that. but that event, april 21, 1836, is of historical significance not only to texans but really to all americans. texas was first controlled by

he nation of france up until 1689. and then the spanish government, country, took over the control of what we now call texas and controlled it for over 130 years until 1821, 1690 to 1821. the nation of mexico revolted against spanish oppression and 1821 became a republic of itself and texas belonged to mexico until 1836. texas declared independence on march 2, 1836. and then we had april 21, 1836, the day of the battle. let me back up a little bit and why texas revolted against mexico, how it became an independent country for nine years, and then later joined the united states.

mr. speaker, here's a map of what mexico looked like in about 1821. after mexico had revolted from spain. and it all happened because of the person who took charge of mexico. his name was santa ana. santa ana became president of mexico in the 1820's, and quickly made himself dictator of mexico. he was supported by the military, he became the military dictator, he abolished the constitution of mexico, he abolished congress of mexico, and not all of the people in mexico approved of it. in fact, 11 different states in mexico revolted against this dictatorship. a lot of times mexican or world history we don't talk about the other revolts in mexico because of this dictator, tyrant, but it did happen. 11 states revolted.

those are in this map, this map shows what mexico looked like in 1821. the red portion, or several of the states that revolted against re revolted santa ana. against mexican rule, santa ana being president, commander in chief, quickly assemble his professional army and started putting down rebellions in mexico. in fact, three of these areas claimed to be countries. there was the republic of the yucatan, here's the yucatan peninsula, which we've all heard about. there was the republic of the rio grande and then of course there was the republic of texas. all claiming independence from the tyrant. in fact, there was a portion of this revolution that almost

succeeded in the interior of mexico, the sacatukus area had as good an army as santa ana but their rebellion was put down quickly by santa ana. it was put down so brutally that other areas of the republic trembled. so after these areas were put down in rebellion, santa ana's moving his army north into what we now call texas. the events in texas occurred simultaneously with all these independent revolts but this is the event that triggered it. it happened in october of 1835. texas, a part of mexico, small town of gonzalez, texas, had a cannon that they were -- they used to protect themselves from the apaches, the other indian nended me thou t arms of the texans, as theycalled themselves. they would take the cannon. so a mexican militia showed up

or a mexican army showed up at gonzalez demanding return of the cannon and a skirmish ensued, guns were fired, the texas revolution was on. for your information, the mexican government was not successful in starting or taking that cannon. it's interesting to note that the texas revolution started, the first battle started because government tried to take away the arms of the citizens. interesting enough, you go backwards to lexington and concord, we remember our american history, the british marched to lexicon and concord, started the battle and the recent, the mexican government -- or excuse me, the british government tried to take the arms, the firearms of the clin nists -- collinnists. they were not successful. and the same event triggered the texas revolution. in fact it was called the shot heard round the world.

but in any event, the battles and skirmishes occurred, started in october of 1835, and this area of texas -- in this area of texas. san antonio area primarily. a group of texans, really they were ver from all over the united states, almost every state in the united states, a half a dozen fgnount had, assembled themselves, 187 of these individuals, along ith 11 hejano. tejano is a uniquely texan name of spanish of texan dissent. those volunteers found themselves in an old beat-up spanish church that was 100 years old at the time that we now call the alamo. they knew, of course, that an at that anna had crossed into the united states -- santa ana had crossed into the united states and was headed straight

for the alamo. those defenders, rather than leave, they decided to stay. they knew of course that they would not be able to defend and protect the alamo very long because santa ana's army was of several thousand strong. versus 187 texans. they were led by one of my most famous or favorite persons in all of history, a 27-year-old lawyer from south carolina named william barrett travis. he was the commander of those volunteers at the alamo. and for 13 days they held off the mexican army. and we've heard the story in the history -- and the history of the alamo, how they with stood the onslaught for 13 days, travis asked for help, for people to come to the alamo, no one came to help him except 32 volunteers from, yes, the town of gonzalez. and while he was behind those alamo walls, he wrote probably the most famous letterritt by anyilar hisrian o military leader in our history

it was datedfebrry 24, 1836. i have a copy of this letter on my wall as doan texans that represent texas in the house of representatives. and here's what it says. and i think it's a call to freedom and liberty, in the spirit of our ancestors. he said, fellow citizens, i am besieged by a thousand or more of the enemy under santa ana. i have sustained a continual bombardment in cannon fire for over 24 hours. but i have not lost a man. the enemy has demanded vunder -- surrender at its discretion, otherwise the fort will be put to the sword. i've eabed that demand with a -- answered that demand with a cannon shot and the flag still waves proudly over the law. i shall never surrender or retreat. i call upon you in the name of

liberty and patriotism and everything deer to our -- dear to our character to come to my aid with all dispatch. the enemy was receiving reinforcements daily and will no doubt increase to 3,000 or 4,000 in a few days. if this call is neglected, i am determined to sustain myself for as long as possible and die like a soldier who never forgets what is due, his honor and that of his country. victory or death, william barrett travis, commander of the alamo. a few days later, on march 6, 1836, after three assaults by santa ana's army, the were every volunteer was put to the sword. last letter, after this one, said that victory will cost santa ana more than defeat.

he was right. the losses were unbelievable against the mexican army. but still they were able to take the alamo. meanwhile, at a place called washington on the brasses, a group of volunteers were writing a constitution, excuse me, a declaration of independence. and then a constitution. and on march 2, four days before the alamo fell, under the leadership of sam houston and others, texas declared independence from mexico. the alamo walls breached, santa ana's army is moving through texas and sam houston is trying to form another army. remember, santa ana's army was no slouch. they were professional. they had defeated all of those other folks in mexico that had sought independence. and revolted against the

dictatorship. they were well trained and had yet to lose a battle. in history, this is called the runaway scrape, where texans who lived between san antonio looward the united states, the runaway scrape. sam houston's trying to find an army and design an army. meanwhile, santa ana is feeling undefeatable. so he approaches the area of what is now called the plains. that is outside of houston, on the eastern side of houston, where the buffalo river meets harrisburg. and on a peninsula there, in a march, sam houston had decided he was going to fight. yet to have fought a battle, the mexican army yet to be defeated, general sam, as we

call him, had an army of about 900 that he assembled. once again volunteers, once again from people all over the united states, and once again texanos, texans of spanish dissent, had assembled together to do battle -- on april 22. however, sam houston assembled a war council, his commanders said, we're not waiting until tomorrow. battles usually take place in the morning, when the sun comes up. but on an afternoon in the heat of the day, sam houston decided he was going to attack the mexican forces. of santa ana. history says -- tradition primarily says that sam houston was busy and occupied by the yellow rosef texas, emily morgan, who was of mixed race and was keeping santa ana

occupied in an encounter and kept him from noticing the texas army being assembled. that's legend, tradition, maybe based on a little historical fact. but we honor emily morgan in our history and we've named a building for her because of what she accomplished in the texas revolution, the first yellow rose of texas. the texans assembled on the high plains and they marched in broad daylight, there were so few of them they had to make one column. they were led also by captain hahn siguin. he was a texano. he had a cavalry regiment. it was just a handful of texanos. and to make sure that hahn siguin and his texanos weren't mistaken for santa ana's army, they put playing cards in their hat bands so they would be

recognized as loyalists to texas and not to santa ana. in those days, i understand the playing card was not small like we have today. but it was rather large. and they stuck those in their hats, their headbands of their sombreros. the fight was on. the texans come down the hill, catch the enemy by surprise. wh defeat by santa ana's army. his firs defeat. in 18 minutes, half of the texas or half of the mexican army was skilled -- killed. the other half were captured. there were more captured than in the texas army. there were the00 texans. 1,800 mexican theres about and they were captured. santa ana got away. he's later found, changed his presidential commander in chief -dictator outfit into a private. and he's captured. he looks like a private. he's brought into the camp grounds. his troops saw who he was, they stood up and saluted him and sam houston had captured the

president and commander and dictator of the enemy. santa ana. texas declared its independence on march 2, 1836. it was realized on april 21, 1836. texas claimed land, here's a map of what texas looked like and claimed to be texas in 1836 after the battle of there. all of what now is texas. but there's more land. part of new mexico, colorado, oklahoma, kansas and part of wyoming was claimed by texas. fact, texas ceded this land to the united states after texas became part of the united states. because texas was a country for nine years. s sahoside. hadwn itsrmy. had it to fight off mexican -- it had to fight off mexican army again to invaders and remained a republic for nine

years. then texas decided to join the united states. it wasn't easy. it was not something that was popular, to put texas in the united states. in fact, it could not get in by a treaty. it takes 2/3 of a vote by the senate to get in by a treaty or treaty to be signed. so it was a joint resolution and texas got into the united states by two votes, when a senator, i understand, from louisiana, changed his vote and voted for the admission of texas. those of us from texas, because of our history, because of the people who are there, of all races, have a unique spirit in my opinion. it is the spirit of freedom. but that's a spirit of america. our history's not really based upon what happened in the 13 colonies. our history's based independent of that. but it's the same. it's a spirit of liberty and freedom from oppression. whether it's king george iii or

whether it's a dictator named santa ana. on april 21 we celebrate that day. on saturday, tomorrow, there will be a reenactment of the battle. we have a monument called on the marshes there. lks versimilar to the wainon monument. except of course it's taller than the washington monument. the star on top of the monument makes it taller than the washington monument. and as a side note, the texas state capitol is taller than his capitol right here, to some 15 feet. but the point is, mr. speaker, that history is important, our history is important. people who live before us, who fought for liberty, who volunteered to fight oppression, even though the odds were overwhelming that

many of them gave up their lives for that, they are as important and they are as much a part of our tradition as the young men and women we have now fighting for america's interests all over the world. . they like those volunteers in the texas war of independence are volunteers. raising their hand to stand between us and tyranny. so we honor those folks who fought and made texas a country for nine years. we are proud of that. and it is important that all of us come to remember our history. th'sthe it i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlemayi

the chair anoupses the speaker's appointment pursuant to section 3 of the protect our kids act of the order of and the house of january 3, 2013, of the following individuals on the part of the house to the commission to eliminate child buse and neglect fatalities. the clerk: ms. suzan dreyfuss of milwaukee, wisconsin. ms. patsy levin of deerwood, maryland. the speaker pro tempore: under the speaker's announced policy of january 3, 2013, the chair recognizes the gentleman from texas, mr. gohmert, for 30 minutes. mr. gohmert: thank you, mr.

speaker. with the news yesterday of the terrible exosest, texas, o thos, hearts ers gtopele so terribly harmed and adversely affected and loss of lives. just as we continue to remember those who have lost family, friends, loved ones, limbs in boston. yesterday in west, texas, it's fest known for their west in the fall of the year, they always advertise having the best kolachi's anywhere in the world. just a beautiful old town. wonderful old town. but it is rocked and needs our prayers. that is, in fact, what the mayor

of west said. we need your prayers. there's a lot of people that got hurt. there's a lot of people, i'm sure, will not be here tomorrow. we are still trying to dwig out -- dig out from under that devastating explosion that occurred there at the fertilizer plant. so we will continue to remember hose people. it is also interesting and worthy of note that in the news we now find that we have confess in the murders of the assistant district attorney the eighboring county, assistant district attorney, and the district attorney and his

wife, they were killed back march 30 of this year. the d.a. was. mark was killed back on january 31. and that was so tragic and any of us that have ever been prosecutors, judges, as i have as well, my friend ted poe has been a judge, you sfer the death threats and -- suffer the death threats and the slings and arrows that come at you. i think in a way it was preparation for slings and arrows verbally that would come in congress. but these were real bullets. that were used to kill a prosecutor, assistant d.a., and district attorney. and any time law enforcement is threatened in such a way, it's a threat to the rule of law, it's a threat to the country.

adly after that -- those two heinous murders, the sthern poverty law center, which this straadnion has helped achieve a very special place, unfortunately, of credibility when they do not deserve credibility, because of the pain and suffering of the institution -- the pain and suffering the institution caused, they came out and they were -- there were articles written. here's one from abc, headline, aryan brotherhood of texas among groups eyed in prosecutors' murders. e article from april 2 says, the aryan brotherhood of texas, a white supremacist prison gang,

has become one of the top focuses of authorities investigating the murders of two texas prosecutors. sources told abc news. prosecutors from kauffman county, texas, helped imprison dozens of aryan brotherhood texas members late last year. in recent weeks kauffman county district corner and his top assistant were murdered in shootings that have left investigators hunting for clues. cops are poring over hundreds of old cases that mcclellan prosecuted and following the clues that not involved not just the aryan brotherhood of texas, but mexican drug cartels, and other violent individuals. but they are aggressively pursuing a possible aryan brotherhood link sources said. well, it was nice of abc to give

so much weight and credibility to their sources. they obviously did not have any clue whatsoever of what they were talking about because just back reported by people at the time, they were concerned about the justice of the peace, former justice of the peace, possible involvement. but just as the southern poverty bigoted began its approach toward group like family research council and all those who happen to hold religious beliefs, affirmed in the bible, constantly referred to in this chamber and the chamber down the hall where nondenominational christian worship services were held through most of the 1800's,

where president thomas jefferson, who coined the phrase, separation of church and state, and said there should be a wall of separation, felt there was no problem with having a nondenominational christian worship service in the united ates citol fac at s had the marine band come to play the hymns. i have a bill that would require a plaque be put down the hall so people wouldnow we are not advocating to have church services every sunday down there. completely unnecessary. but it is importantor people ot have this view that is completely inappropriate by people who would attempt to rewrite history. but the family research council, as so many other christian groups, hold to the religious belief about marriage as was recognized by jesus at his first

recorded miracle at a wedding between a man and a woman, as was recorded in the old testament in genesis that god saw man alone and felt it would be better for him to have a helpmate. and then created woman. regardless of how anyone elieves everyone got here, i love the way the late bob murphy used to explain in his country way, though he was a brilliant intellect, he explained things in a countrified fashion, but he said, i feel sorry for eightests , i -- atheists, i do. they have to believe nobody plus nothing equals everything. the people that met for most of the 1800's down the hall, most of them hoped for the day when slavery would be gone, many of them had been to church services

down the hall, including john quincy adams, spent their livesy america. pushingorhat day a and t because the family research council held the beliefs about marriage being between a man and a woman, that most of recorded -- most people have in recorded history, and has -- though there are some people who interpret the bible differently, if you look at the real interpretation, it's no mistake what it says and what it means, but because people hold the values that the pilgrims depicted down in the rotunda having a prayer meeting with an open bible believed, as the family research council held the same views about marriage that george washington did, who is

considered the father of the country, because the family research center held the same views about marriage that desoto, who is pictured down the hall in the rotunda, finding the mississippi river and being so overwhelmed at this incredible amount of fresh water this far inland, they commemorated the spot as depicted in that massive mural by digging a hole and planting a cross there to commemorate the spot. since the family research council believed marriage was the same thing that pocahontas and those present for her baptism depicted downinda becau family research council believed inherotunda,hebe d the same religious convictions about marriage of all of those people dedicted -- depicted as i mentioned down the

hall, the southern poverty law center claimed that family research center was a hate group and stirred up animosity against played a eventually role, as we found out later, no one wanted to jump to conclusions, but it was very clear that their branding the family research council, chick f i lay -- chick-fil-a, as being hateful simply because they held religious beliefs protected by a constitution that marriage is between a man and a woman, the southern poverty law enter stirred up hate, animosity, and rage against the family research council. and on the fateful day, not so long ago, a gunman came to the family research council with a

bunch of chick-fil-a sandwiches and a gun and but for the valiant work of the man that stopped him and got shot in the process, there could well have been 15 dead family research council employees with 15 chick-fil-a sandwiches beside them. there is an article here written by brian preston, april 15, 2013, says, news broke friday afternoon that an arrest had been made in the murders of three people, those murders of kauffman county d.a. and s wife and prosecutor mark has triggered national coverage. msnbc's chris matthews ran an eight-minute segment on the killings on april 3 detailing the widespread belief that aryan

brotherhood, white supremacists, thug groups, were behind the killings. i live in east texas. and the widespread beliefs in east texas were not that the aryan brotherhood had been involved in this. usually they take action to indicate they are not trying to hide from anything they did. it just didn't sound like those people. yet that's what some were stirring up. the sources at abc. the article goes on, but if the reports out of kauffman co are correct, the aryan brotherhood isn't behind the crimes, former kauffman justice of the peace, eric ws, and we kw now,ouple days o confessed as being part of it, wife. it was him and his this art erikle says cbs reports

that williams was arrested friday and charged with making terrorist threats which include threatening county employees and issuing demands that had to be met at a certain time on a certain day. capital murder charges may come in the next day or two. according to the report, williams had a history with both mcclellan and haas. both had prosecuted and secured a conviction against him in twelve for burglary and theft by a public servant. surveillance cameras caught williams taking computer equipment from a county building as part of his a-- from a county building. as part of his appea williams claimed that mcclellan and haas did not like him. as the case unfolds, it is starting to look like a local vendetta, not part of a national anything by a political crime syndicate like the aryan brotherhood.

where did the national media get the idea that the aryan brotherhood was iolve possly from the southern poverty law center which on january 31, a day after haas' murder, posted a lengthy piece by mark potoc bringing up the a.b. link. toke also showed up on msnbc on april 1, paraphernalia thetically, april fool's day, the day after the mcclellan murders to point the finger at the aryan brotherhood. other press followed up, flowing from that january 31 article posted by these southern poverty law center. but if williams is the killer, then it looks like the splc got the whole story wrong. meanwhile, on the ground in kauffman county, suspicious was already falling on williams much earlier -- suspicions were already falling on williams much earlier. the pieces might have fallen

into place earlier this says, mark haas' murder might have been solved and williams arrested before mcclellan was killed if law enforcement hadn't wasted time chasing the white supremacist wild goose when the d.a. himself tried to tell them who murdered mark haas. county judge bruce woods said sunday that mcclellan repeatedly told him that mcclellan beeved williams was behind haa slaying. the first time was in the emergency room in the hours after haas was shot down by a mysterious gunman dressed in black. he was distraught, woods said, to me, i know who did this. well, who, mike? he said, well, eric williams. mcclellan, who worked for years as a diagnosic psychologist described williams as a narcissistic psych path during that conversation and others.

woods said mcclellan never elaborated on why he thought williams was involved. on march 27, woods said he met with mcclellan in the county judge's office. he said, are you still convinced that it's eric williams? wood recalled, he said, absolutely. the sblc and its quote, hate watch, unquote, and, quote, hate map, unquote, fuel media and left wing speculation while helping the center generate onations and the latter even inspired an attempt at a mass killing at the headquarters of the family research council last year. this have misdirected law enfoement lo for a man to commit murder. one federal prosecutor quit a case on april 3 citing the danger of dealing with the aryan brotherhood after those

riginal three murders. it is clear that there is hate in the heart of the southern poverty law center individuals ho would stirrup such hatred oward whites or toward a fantastic christian group like the family research center and like other christian groups of all types of races. against my black friends here in washington who simply believe what they read in the bible about marriage and because they believe what they read in the bible about marriage, you have a group in this country that is so full of hate that they can't stand the thought of someone having

religious beliefs different from theirs so they stir up was tal again the hate crimes bill. and yet this isroup that wanted a hate crimes bill and yet they're stirring up hate. as a christian, it's my prayer that those in the soutrn poverty law c that are so filled with jealousy and hate and anmossity will come to know the peace that passes all understanding -- animosity will come to know the peace that passes all understanding. that allows this nation to heal so many wounds that will only fester with a group like that stirring up hatred. we will continue to hope and ray for such peace and the complete diminishment and disillusion of hatred, of such

a vial nature within the hearts of those people there. so they could come to the point of being able to hold hands and sing songs and hymns together as so many did around this 2001.y on 9/12 of and as i've done with others, different races, creeds, right here in washington, d.c. because we share a love for our nation and a love for god. and when we do that,'s no hyphenated american. that was thene th heartache and the anguish on 9/12 of 2001. that was so amazing. we were americans. we were not hyphenated,

anything. we were americans. we were one people. out of many we came together as one. and it continues to be my hope and prayer that groups that stirrup hate like the southern poverty law center and brand others as hate in an attempt to disguise their own will come to know peace and will come to know love and will take the example of the man whose bust is down in the rotunda as well, dr. martin luther king jr.. who advocated to the very end, peace and the love that jesus s. may the southern poverty law center find such love and such grace. we also have a story here, heldale on the

congressional hearing producing plo shocker on benghazi -- produces shocker on benghazi. it says, kudos to the members of the house foreign affairs committee for squarely placing benghazi on the table at today's hearing. with secretary of state john kerry, john kerry's answers were nothing less than shocking. what we learned is that state is conducting yet another internal review of benghazi, initiated by kerry himself. immediately after taking office and allegedly due soon. this amounts to a huge entitlement of the credibility of kerry's predecessor, hillary clinton, and of the investigation by the state department's accountability review board. clearly even john kerry is not confident in the obama administration's versions of the verns -- events.

kerry promised the committee that he would clear the air, in his words, though he also repeatedly used the phrase that clears the air needs to be done so we can move on to far more important issues. and i am so grateful to secretary kerry for taking that position. we do need to get to the truth. dead d at benghazi, the americans cry out for truth. hose who were harmed and hurt, americans there deserve the truth. opefully we will get that. mr. speaker, with so much suffering and anguish right now in america, it is still the greatest nation in the history of the world.

and may god guide the leadership in this country, that we don't drop the ball and fail on our watch. that we show ourselves to be worthy recipients of the gifts of liberty given to us by prior nerations, all coming as the founders noted as a gift from god. ith that i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the chair will entertain a motion to adjourn. mr. gohmert: at this time i move that we do now hereby adjourn. the speaker pro tempore: the question is on the motion to adjourn. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. the ayes have it. the motion is adopted. accordingly the house stands adjourned until 11:00 a.m. to

tomorrowuse is back for a pro-4 but session. they will take up a bill that metal toaps aware and commemorate the 50th commemoration of the 15th street baptist church, where four girls died. boehner and pelosi held briefings today. boehner told reporters five committees will issue a report next week into the investigation on the attack in then dousing. he said the report will not be a conclusion, but the beginning of the next phase. democratic leader pelosi and

mike thompson talked about the house version of a compromise on gun background checks. we will show you both briefings now. good morning, everyone. it has been a rough week for the country. our hearts go out to the victims and the people of boston. i am glad the president is up there today, and i had my prayers to his. here in the capital, envelops were sent ton congress and the president. all of us who serve and work in members, staff, reporters, though a special thanks to the capitol police and our chief administrative

officer creek banks to that dedication of the men and women who work here and there outstanding teams, the system worked as it was designed. as a result, potentially deadly substance was detected and four to miles away. let me say thanks to the secret service. it has been a rough week, but we are thankful for the blessings of life and the opportunity to live in a country whose people look out for each other. of course, the work of democracy continues. in the coming weeks we will move but bill's focus onxpding the american energy production and creating jobs. this is all part of our all of the above energy strategy. we know gas prices remain painfully high for fantasies -- families and businesses.

it is about revitalizing our manufacturing sector, growing the economy for american families. energy is the foundation of our economy. we need to focus on the promise of prosperity, north american energy prosperity, and the abundance it offers to our country. america pause great menace is tied to our freedom to produce things, and republicans have a plan to make america a nation of builders once again. we wanted to streamline our government, cut red tape, and unleash the power of north american energy. with these things we can revitalize american manufacturing and foster long- economic growth and job creation for our citizens. lastly, we are determined to get to the truth regarding the terrorist attack on our mission in been gauzy, libya. three americans lost their lives. in the last year i directed five

committees to loo various parts of this investigation. next week these committees will provide a progress report on the inveigation up to now. this progress report will not represent the conclusion of their investigation, but it will be the beginning of what i will describe as the next phase. this is a matter of national security and importance. our investigation will in fact continue. questions. >> now that the senate has failed to pass a gun bill, what does the house -- what do you plan to do on guns or violence in the house? >> our committees continue to work at this. we have a congressman from pennsylvania who is looking at that issue of mental health with regard to -- and the violence.

to the judiciary committee continues to look at the practical steps we can take to better protect the american people. no decisions have been made beyond that. >> speaker boehner, the president and other advocates have warned there will be a political price to pay with voters. do you have concerns how to nurture publicans could face -- house republicans could face -- >> >> [indiscernible] and gy a determine whether there are common-sense steps we can take to look -- to reduce the chances of this. at theour reaction immigration bill, and from that conversation with the members of the last several weeks and months, do you think a comprehensive immigration bill at all could pass muster with your members? >> i want to congratulate the senate gang of eight with coming forward with their bill.

i am sure there are parts that i would agree and disagree with. the fact is they have worked together in a bipartisan way to craft this bill. the house gang of eight have been meeting for over four years, continuing to make significant progress. in addition, chairman goodlatte is working diligently with his committee on hearings about various parts of this problem. you have to remember about 3/4 of members of congress have never dealt with the issue of immigration. there is a big learning curve that the members are going to have to go through. our whip, kevin mccarthy, has been holding sessions attended by members, being briefed by chairman goodlatte and the immigration subcommittee chairman to help familiarize members with the various issues prlem ofllegal immigration.d the

appy, but thevery process is continuing. indo you think the country the wake of the marathon bombings, do you think the country has in any way become too complacent about national security and the situation is happening, and do you think there is anything congress should or could do to prevent anything from like this from happening again? >> welle, the world is a different place than it was before 9/11. thee have seen since 9/11, war in iraq and the war in afghanistan, we have got new types of thwart making, including a terrorist attack and it's changed the

face of security. before 9/11, people would not think that these things could happen in our country. but it is a new era, and all americans need to be vigilant. i think these incidents, when they occur, remind all of us that we have got to be vigilant. esther speaker, the minority leader was urging you to appoint conferees to hammer out a budget. plaonoing that? >> i am missing something on this story. budget,e has passed a the senate passed a budget, the chairman of the two committees were talking, and is customer quest customary that there is no formal appointment of a conference and the other is a framework worked out in which they can proceed.

paul ryan, the chairman, has been meeting with senator murray and having conversations. i would occur -- and courage that to occur. under our rules, if you appoint conferees after 20 legislative the there is no agreement, minority has the right offer and motions to instruct, which become political bombs to throw up on the house floor. to be frank with all of you, we are following what i would describe as regular order, these informal conversations aren't right. -- are under way. >> is there a chance you do not have ae on the house, or do you schuler there wi b a vot the house floor on some kind of gun control measure?

>> the relevant care workingisssue. we need to work with them. when we have a decision to announce, we will announce it. thanks, everybody. [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2013] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] >> good morning. as we gather here this morning, people are gathering in boston for a prayer service. we join them, our thoughts and prayers are with the people in boston, the victims of all this senseless tragedy, wherever they are from. we pray for their recovery of the injured and offer our support as americans and as members of congress. words are always in adequate at times like this.

words alone cannot consult a love once, but we will do what we can to care for them with the investigation ongoing. it will ensure that justice is done. as we watched the the elements and a tragic fire in west, outside of waco, we offer our condolences there to the families and those individuals killed in the blaze, and we will do what we can do to assist in the recovery efforts. life is fragile. you never know from one day to the next. as our hearts are still in boston, our concerns are across the country for those who are in pain. our work continues here in washington, d.c. right now our focus is on adopting a budget that reflects our country's dahlias, creates jobs, and strengthens the middle jobs, and republicans at repeatedly called for regular order, in sessions of the house

and senate, with the president and vice president, saying we want regular order. they call for regular order all the time. they have repeatedly chastised the senate for not passing a budget bill pickett both houses have passed budget bills. the senate has passed its bill. april 15 was the deadline for us having for a conference report. so i have sent a letter, the leaders of the house democratic leader should, have sent a leader -- a letter to boehner asking him to appoint conferees. the time has come, it is long overdue, we need a discussion of priorities that allows the public to make a judgment of his priorities they prefer, and they understand what the are, who is advocating economic growth with good jobsncg --aving a balanced oa t

g the middle class.and focusaid last week, our in the next while will be on the guns and budget. i am pleased we will be joined by my colleague, congressman mike thompson of california. eighthssman thompson is a vietnam vet, a wounded vietnam vet, a hunter, a gun owner, and he is the head of artest forced on gun violence prevention, and he is the co-author in the house with peter king to put orth and manchin-toomey compromise that failed so sadly last night. we're so disappointed. our store was expressed appropriately by president obama last night. i invited mike to join us here to tell you where we go from here and to answer the question

the american people are saying, what can we do to change this? mike, which speak to this. thank you for your leadership. >> thank you, it is a pleasure to join you and to talk about and to answer any questions that you guys may have on gun violence prevention. it was not just that toomey- manchin the menace that failed last night, it was everything, gu trafficking that faast night. if you are confused by the boat like i am sure the 93% of the american people who believe we should have background checks are confused, you're not alone, because this is just unexplainable. but i can tell you is it is not going to slow us or to turn our work in regard to gun violence prevention one bit. we met this morning with the vice-chairs the task force, the

senate leader reid's staff was there to brief us, we had one of the folks from the outside groups brief us on what they are doing, and when we see what happens with the other two amendments today, we will recalculate. i met -- every time i get in the culating."ys "we calcula the american people want congress to take action to make their workplace and their schools safer, and we can do that while protecting the second amendment. have provenha teter king and i introduced in the house. it does all of those things and protect the second amendment. and we will figure out how to make sure our colleagues who did

not get that memo get it so they understand that people they've represent want these common- sense steps taken. >> thank you very much for your leadership and for your optimism that something will be done, because something must be done, because that is what the american people expect and what they deserve. the process will go -- how do we go from here is we will be collecting and infighting bipartisan sign up as co- sponsors of the bill, which is already bipartisan, to get as many code-sponsors as possible. when the public says to us what can we do, you can encourage your member of congress to co- sponsoring the bill in the house, and what we want also is a vote. the american people can say to the leadership in the congress to the speaker of the house give us a vote. give us a vote in the house.

see we are notan taking no for an answer. it makes me wonder at a time like this how important we think we are that any one of us thinks our sl liy is more important than the safety of our children, that we cannot have the courage to take a vote. as police chiefs have said to us and gaby giffords reiterated today in her up-and, fear, your foot afraid of the gun lobby? how about the fear of the children who had to face that violence in the classroom? it is disappointing, but again, it is going to energize the effort said that more attention, even more attention isd the chn congress. and who are on the side of the safety of our children and their homes and their schools and their neighborhoods and their communities. any questions? considering how none of these

amendments have passed but gives you an idea that this will go anywhere in the house? folks who had a vote on this understood that there is a passionate majority in their state that is for this. i saw that fear right before leaving last weekend to go back to our districts. i asked a california colleague of mine to sign on as an original co-sponsor, we were doing one democrat, when republican. i asked a republican column, someone whom i work with here and and we both served i steo a moderateepublican, somebody who would do this, and he said he would prefer not to, i will vote for it, but i will not co- author it.

poll, not one of them has called me. what happened last night in the senate is going to be a strong message to the voters across this country involved and time to pick up the and call their members as the leader pointed out. they need to call their representatives and seiko- authored this bill, say we deserved a vote on this bill. when you say what gives me the confidence of it is the voters we all represent. >> [indiscernible] aboutmigrard a lot ion also, and [indiscernible] d think these two issues are so tough that is why these issues have not been addressed for so many years in congress, would

that create problems doing anything with immigration? >> i hope not. i hope the american people spoke oquentthe election. the hispanic community voted 70% minds on the republican side that immigration was a issue that the time has come. that is what we will have a bill because 70% hispanics voted democratic. it is that they had a clearer from howthe fog faded important this issue was to the people in our country. i feel confident about how we go forward on immigration. i commend the eight senators for the work they did. of course it is a compromise. when i change things? of course, but i think that is i think a compromise is about. i am calling them gangs of eight -- the bipartisan team in the

house, the have been working on this issue for an long time, and their proposals are very much like what is in the senate. we're pretty happy about the place is. do not get me wrong, it is not a bill i would have written or something that all our members are quick to embrace, because again, it is a compromise. as a compromise, it is the boldest, denominator, the best we can do, and it is very good. again my members will have their concerns about it and their complaints about it because it is a compromise. how many more times be byhe time we leave the e of july that this will be the law of t land. i would not say that one or the other. the one thing i it -- they do have in common is the american people have spoken in the election, the hispanic community

did, it changed. we did not win the election, but the issue was well served by the vote in the election, so we will have immigration reform. when the american people speak and take responsibility for getting their voices heard, the most endowment -- intimate way of members of congress -- nothing is more eloquent to a member then the voice of their own constituents, and that is gabby said to tell them how important this vote is to you. it is inconceivable to the nra that this will happen. we he to shorten the distance of time between the inconceivable. >> boehner and said he would like to have regular order on guns and violence as well. do you want to see that play out in the judiciary committee on the floor, or will you go to a discharge position on the

thompson-king amendment put them to answer your question, when we see what the speaker does do. if he was waiting for the senate act and now he feels he does not have any work to do, that just says we are not the legislative branch. the first branch of government. it is our responsibility to legislate. we have our responsibility in the house to do that. i am hopeful we will proceed with the legislation. in the meantime, it is a compromise. toomey bill is a compromise. it is important and indispensable, each of them, to our country's picture, that they cannot protect children with their vote. matter,a very personal as you saw with the president's

beautiful remarks yesterday. but we knowd -- that the american people are concerned about this. i do not know why our colleague from california has not heard from his constituents, but i promise you one thing, he will. one more. upon the boston bombings. are you concerned that there could be following attacks and that you need to reach out to the public and start sharing potential suspects' photos? >> the last thing the authorities and those doing the investigation is for members of congress to think what we can do from hundreds of miles away. appreciate the tenor ofr question about we want to support them in every way, and i think the message that has gone

out from deval patrick, front mayor is be vigilant and speak out if you see any unusual behavior in this investigation. how they time what they've release and how that is in furtherance of resolving this, that is really up to them. you go too early, you might meet to an advantage. timing is everything in these apprehensions. justice will be done, and i think we should respect those on the ground who are doing that job. i know this is in the forefront of concerns of the president of the united states and members of congress. we in congress stand ready to help in any way we can. the leadership of the president has been well respected, and i think i will stand with that.

i want to thank congressman mike thompson for his leadership. he has brought together a cross- section of members and vice- chairs of the task force in a way,ctable -- respectful and i will go to him in case he has any closing remarks. >> i am as energized as i ever was. i think we need to move this bill. we need to have background checks. is inconceivable to me that someone could believe ca keep guns away from criminals, the dangerously mental ill, without at a minimum having a background check. you cannot be against criminals and the dangerously mentally ill from getting guns and the against background checks. it is our first line of defense, and we need to step up, we need to be responsible, we need to

get this passed. >> when it became possible we would not have an assault weapon ban or we would not have a prohibition on future sales of high-capacity magazines, it made the background check bill even more important. not having successes in terms of reducing the numbers of guns that are out there -- 300 million assault weapons -- the guns out there already. the background check is really very, very important, and i thank you and the task force for your leadership on it, you and representative kenya for your leadership for presenting this bill in the house, and we hope to be able to say by the time we meet again that we have an overwhelming number of and a bipartisan way of co-sponsors

e american people have weighed in not only for post- sponsorship, but for a vote. the key all very much. >> thank you. boehner and policy and their weekly briefings as the house wraps up work. ramadi the 2013 congressional directory is now available, a guide to congress with updated listings for each member. contact info, it district maps all included. information about cabinet members, the nation lost the governor's. top $95 cents plus shipping and handling. good to c-span.org/shop. >> when the war began the contest into session in july and issued a statement, ever since crittenden resolution that articulate the the consensus war goals of united

states. it was very simple. very clear. the purpose of this war is to restore the union, and it is not -- and is not to disrupt the social institutions of this out, and everybody knew what that meant. it meant not going to disrupt slavery. >> the evolution of lincoln's views on slavery. the political and legal factors saturdayhat e t, ones andistory a o'clock p.m. eastern on c-span3. obama travel to boston today for an internet-a memorial service for victims of the boston marathon bombing carried the fbi has scheduled a briefing to update the investigation at 5:00 p.m. eastern this afternoon. we will bring it to you like.

this service is just over 90 minutes. i'm foundow ["amazing grace" being sung]

>> o a el presentation, "healing our city." of are watching the interior the church. this is an opportunity for the

committee to come ther. cathedral,nt in the the archbishop of boston, president barack obama, deval menino,ayor thomas and also with officials, and leaders of faith committed is around the boston area. i am the president of becker catholic tv network, and bank of returning us with this special presentation, healing our city. boston prays together. the opening hymn for today bus

service, praised the lord, the almighty, based on a german corral published in 1680, a magnificent hymn of praise to god. ♪ 's service istoday

provided by the cathedral, joined from a number of choirs from around the boston area, as will as the boston children's chorus, and a musical selecti by yo-yo ma. the service today will be read of a tvmer bancho station in boston. ♪

carpe >> you may be seated. there are age-old questions that rise up far too often these days, questions we all ask no matter what our fate condition or our station in life. how can a good god allow bad things to happen?

where was god when evil slithered in and planted the horror that exploded our innocence? what someone this morning has answers, i do not, but this is what i know -- of thisere in the midst secret gathering, in this sanctuary, and beyond. different faiths, different races, strangers down first by loss and pain, but now clinging together and growing strength in a city that has always faced the darkness and on. we are members of one another. our community of resilience. hard-pressed, but not defeated. unfounded, but not consumed. we are gathered i and through the blur of each

other's tears, and the peaks of so many broken hearts, we will rise in committee and face whenever the future holds, resolutely as one. us, is what is demanded of and this is who we are. resilience.in our the grit that gets us back up again, and nothing taken will be forgotten or lost in vain. this is how g works. good morning. am reverend ms. walker from roxbury presbyterian church, and i welcome you as we gather in community to help heal our beloved city and this violence- weary world. let us pray.

in the beginning, you said let there be light, and the light shone, piercing the darkness. help us find our way through the darkness now. you taught us we belong to each other. help us hold each other. we pray comfort for those who have lost loved ones, courage for those who are struggling to the trauma of physical and psychic pain, and tenderness to those for whom the world no longer makes sense. lord, bless this broken hearted ,ity as she finds her balance dust yourself off, and tilts her head back toward the sky. open our eyes to your presence

this morning. .pen our hearts your grace restore us so that we can see and be tall light once again. holy, forat we hold me that is jesus christ, but the people of got together say amen. >> amen. reverend liz walker offering the greeting. the greek orthodox metropolis. >> it is my privilege and high honor of representing the greek orthodox community ofoston and new england at this interfaith see atealing.

mday a day rich with symbolism, a terrific actor of terrorism wounded the heart and soul of our city and our nation. thousands from throughout the world were in boston as participants and spectators of the marathon, which, as we all the, recalls a run in ancient city of marathon to athens to announce the victory of greece over the forces of an freedom,at devalued human dignity, and democracy. the boston marathon always coincides with patriots day, when we commemorate the battles of lexington and concord, the first of the american revolution. sadly, it was on patriots' day when we celebrate the values of

freedom and democracy and a fiercely independent spirit of america -- it was on that day that evil or reared its ugly head once again and countless, innocent men, women, and children fell victims to a senseless and unspeakable act of ity. that bombs of terrorism may killed and injured, but they cannot crush the american spirit. today we think cardinal o'malley forpening the embrace of his cathedral to all , tos, to president obama governor patrick, to mirror meninno, to all who are in public service, to the religious leaders of the commonwealth, to every citizen regardless of

,reed, we gather as a community as brothers and sisters in the household of god to our our heads in silent prayer for the repose of the souls of three innocent victims whose lives were violently taken and for the countless victims who will bear painful wounds for the rest of their lives. we come today to thank god for the police and firefighters, the national guard, for the doctors and nurses, for all who responded selflessly and courageously. py our gracious, ling, mercifulssionate, our god, the healer of our souls and bodies, watches over us and

comfort us and our our a pain. and may he who is the prince of peace, they he bring peace to our souls and to our community, and may almighty god bless us. the greek orthodox leader, spiritual leader of boston and new england. speaking now, mayor thomas menino, the city cost longest- serving mayor, recovering from some recent leg surgery. it is great to have the mayor with us today.

you are watching live coverage of healing our city, a service from the cathedral of holy cross. >> good morning. the amount good morning. , becausegood morning we are together. we are one boston. ,o adversity, no challenge nothing can tear down the resilience in the heart of the city and its people. hatred stirs up strife, but

love covers all sins. since the clock struck that fateful hour, love has covered this resilience city. , this never loved it people more, than i do today. than wenever loved it do today. we love the brave ones who felt the blast and still raced hrough the smoke, [indiscernible] to answer cries of those bandied. this was the courage of our city at waork. we love the fathers and brothers. we took shirts off their backs to stop the bleeding.

e ths d sisters who cared for the injured, the neighbors and the business owners, the home owners all across the city, they opened their doors and their hearts to the weary and the scare. what is mine is yours. we will get through this together. this is the compassion of the city at worked. we never love the heroes who were our uniforms more than we do this hour. boston's finest in their blue, they carried kids to safety and calmed the city in crisis prickis. emt's performed miracles. we love the national guard, our service members and who brought

-- to our streets. the nurses ers, [indiscernible] grave victims of the injured arrived. strength of our city at work. we have never loved the people of the world and our great country more for their .nd shes carr we even love new york city more. played in lower manhattan. it gives us more strength to say prayer after prayer for the

victims still recovering in hospital and at home. it gives us the strength to say goodbye to the young boy with a big heart, martin richard. we pray for his sister and mom, his brother and his dad, and it helps us to say we will miss k who broughtell and theto the marathon, student who came to the city to search for education. we will never forget her. i am telling you, nothing can defeat the heart of this city. us down,ill take because we take care of one another.

of the smoke of the air and the blood on the streets, tears in our eyes, we triumphed over the heat on monday afternoon. it is a glorious thing, the love and the strength that covers our city. nextll push us ford year, because this is boston, a city with compassion and strength that knows no bounds. [applause] mayor thomas menino, the longest sitting mayor of the city of boston, speaking about the indomitable spirit of this city and a great convolutions of

the police, fire, and emergency personnel who heroically assisted victims and the dying this past monday. now, thea reflection serves asancy taylor, a minister in a church in the city of boston. ♪ acquirer now leads us in the hand "my life flows on in endless song." ♪

>> located at the finish line of the marathon, old south church in boston has developed a ministry to marathoners and they are a special breed. they are built of sturdy stuff. as we do every year on marathon sunday, the day before, we invite the athletes to worship, and they come in the hundreds. during the service we asked them our arms and we raise

in blessing over them, and in the words of isiah, we supercharge them, saying maybe you wereun and not grow weary. may you block and not faint. not faint.walk and this year, in the midst of all, in the midst of a peace-filled international competition unlike any other, explosions, chaos, terror. at from the church's tower this is what i saw that day. i saw tough people run toward, not away from, toward the explosions, toward the chaos, the mayhem, toward the danger. making of their own bodies, sacraments of mercy.

and in the minutes and the hours that followed, i saw with my own eyes good samaritans taking off their coats and their shirts, wrapping them around athletes who were shivering, quaking with cold and his limbs were stiffening. good samaritans who fed, clothed, and sheltered runners and families, assisted families, shared their cell phones, opened homes and stores, and, not least, guided strangers to boston's cal paths. today our tower overlooking the finish line, we continue to fly our three marathon banners. today we fly them first in memory of those whose lives were taken that day, and, second, we

fly them with prayers for those who were harmed and those who grieve, for there is still much, much pain in the world today, and we're very far from being healed. and we fly them also in thanksgiving, for first responders who made of their own .odies sacraments of blessing here is what i know today. we are shaken, but we are not forsaken. another plus heat will not make abbas heaters. others cruelty will only redouble our mercy. amen? >> reverend nancy taylor, minister, old south church.

and the senior rabbi at temple israel in boston. obama,idenmr governor and mrs. patrick, mayor nino, we're all leadership, your constant and compassion that presents, it is a signal of the triumph of order over chaos, of love over hatred. the gifted columnist anna quindlan wrote grief remains one of the few things that has the power to silence us. it is a whisper in the world and a clamor within, the landscapes of all our lives become as full of creatures as the surface of the mid. prayers wish and our

this morning to hold not only this city and its souls in our embrace, but to extend our reach kindredick s-- spirits in newtown and west texas -- our arms are wide enough to hold you as well. as a rabbi once said, -- [speaking in hebrew] the entire world is a narrow bridge, bute torace w yo fear. as we share our grief with those who have lost life or limb and for the constellations of families and friends who surround them, we turn to these

words taken from psalm 147, verse 3. [speaking in hebrew] god, healer of the broken hearted, and binder of their wounds, grant consolation to those who mourn and healing to all those who suffered loss and pain. at our them with strength and courage and restored to them and to all of us who grieve with them the sense of life plus goodness and purpose. fill their hearts and hours with reverence and with love, that we might turn to you again with hearts restored to wholeness and committed to the rate-creation of well-being and peace. >> got heals the broken hearted.

heals the brokenhearted. from the chair of the newtn england interfaith council and the civil rights outreach director of the american islamic conference. in the name of god, the most compassionate and most merciful, mr. president, governor patrick come mayor menino, and fellow citizens, we are gathered together to mourn the loss of life in a criminal attack on our committee. what happened on monday as shocked and horrified us, but it has also brought us together. i ask you to share the message of my community's culture. i want to cite a passage that i studied when i was 7 years old.

i was living at the time in damascus, syria. one afternoon while walking back home from school, i experienced the terror of a car bomb that exploded on my route. i will never forget the sound of the blast, the accused russia of humanity, and the anger and if your. returned onngs monday. it is a line from the muslim holy scripture, the passage declares it is inspired by the jerati. that whoever kills a soul, it is as if he hadled mankind entirely, and whoever saves the life, it if he saved all ofankind. on boston streets on monday

afternoon, next to a great public library that bears the many names of the prophet mohammad, peace be upon him, we saw all souls murdered, but also lives saved. one minute to know, i was at another ceremony in boston. i stood in faneuil hall with 400 other people before a bust of frederick douglass and john adams that came from 77 different countries and all ands of villages background. a lonely immigrant from mauritania took our oath of citizenship. born americans may not be aware of what naturalized citizens pledged when they join the and add to its of america. i was profoundly struck by the words they recited.

we pledge to defend the constitution and laws of the united states against all ,nemies, foreign and domestic and we pledged to perform work of national importance under civilian direction when required by law. when i recited this pledge last week, i cannot imaginehat wo of national importance requirede in boston so soon. but now, all of us need to take up this pledge. we all have service to perform and indeed, we are all move by the thousands of people who stepped forward in a moment of tragedy and confusion to serve. whont to salute everyone ran toward the victims, despite risk to themselves. everyone who gave blood, everyone who volunteered shelter for stranded runners, i want to salute the members of law

enforcement who are protecting us as we speak and to thank the people around the world who are sending messages of hope and solidarity. the civilian work of national and international interest, no one has to take a formal vote. we know instinctively that we must rise to the occasion and act because of our common humanity. that is what makes us americans. now, aion under god, and prayer. one god, a compassionate zero more simple one, welcome in heaven knows innocent souls who were taken from us and grant the surviving family members the strength to face their loss. w othose last mol the wounds of all bostonians who are hurting. united by faith in something

boston dedicatees.the people of ourselves to the great task before us, theal, to rebuild, and to serve once again as the shining city on the hill. .men >> good morning. this morning, the words havengpsalm 125, verse 3, particular resonance. for the center of wickedness shall not rest on the land allotted to the righteous, so that the righteous man not stretch out their hands to do wrong. as we have confirmed so

graphically this week, wickedness' does exist in this world, but we are reminded by scripture that god has put a hedge of limitation around us. it may manifest itself for a moment, but then has to relinquish the field to a higher, nobler power with an ultimate control. this is one become together in times like this as people of faith, to go beyond the immediate dimension of terror, deaf, and lossr ey sphere, to place this terrible tragedy in a higher context, in a brighter light that can redeem it and infuse it with elements of hope, love, and unity. if we could not gravitate to

that dimension were infinite good sits on his throne, at the very moment gazing lovingly upon this city, grieving for and with us and those who have literally a lost life or limb, then perhaps evil would have achieved the victory that it saw so fruitlessly on patriots' day. but we are people of faith. we believe in a benevolent god who holds a steady hand over history. even as he allows hatred and fanaticism to have its moments, has also declared time and time again through the many voices of millennial faith that in the end, but this will always prevail. that yes, weeping may stay for the night, but joy comes in the morning.

events such as the one that raised us on that monday afternoon just a couple of days ago, reminds us that we inhabit a mysterious world, where a loving and sovereign god sometimes allows a flash of dark energy to penetrate our domain, but only to ennoble us and to extract from us an even greater measure of good and generosity. the dilemma of evil is that even as it carries out its dark, sinister work, it always ends up strengthening good. and evoking even more strongly the very light that it so desperately tried to extinguish. we have all been inspired by the images of heroism and the just plain good is that have already emerged in the first few hours of this unspeakable tragedy.

this has released much good. in our weakness, we have been made strong. in our suffering, we have been inspired to pray for others. in our wounded this, we have extended consolation. in our diversity, we have been a united. in our perplexity, we have been led began to run to god and to remember that no matter how strong, fast, or successful we may be, we are ultimately children of eternity, able to find true hope and solace only in the bosom of our fatrth, read spiritual humility. that paradox of weakness that we have entered into, we can become

more gracious and more powerful, better channel for the grace of god to enter into this broken world. this is a small immediate comfort to those who lie right now and a hospital bed, contemplating a life that has been irrevocably changed, or who grieve a los or wounded loved one. we pray, however, that they also may receive the grace to look beyond this moment of suffering and to believe that their life is far from over, that they can rise beyond their pain and their loss and become spiritually strong and more agile, that they can find fullness of life and happiness and personal realization in the new normal that they now inhabit. may never allowed bitterness or hatred to linger more than a brief moment in their soul. may they received that piece

that passes all understanding. maybe a will to translate into their own spiritual language reassuring words of the apostle paul, who shelled separate us from the love of christ? shell tribulation or distress or persecution or famine or nakedness or peril or sword? as it is written, for your sake york -- we are killed all day long. we are counted as shp r the yet in all these things. god's love will yet have the last word. god has not forsaken boston. god has not forsaken our nation. he merely weaves a beautiful, bright tapestry of goodness that includes a few dark strands.

by fayed, we will leave this sacred space today to continue that noble narrative of patriotism, self sacrifice and simple striving that was only briefly interrupted by evil, but that now continues, richer, denser, and more poignant than ever. may our faith be strengthened, that we might leave from here with his conviction. god bless us all. . amen. up to the moun

toause you asked me clouds the to where the sky was blue eye could see all around me everywhere meod l ar everywhere

♪ ♪

♪

>> the boston children's chorus singing "up to the mountain." [applause] >> to our courageous president, to our compassionate governor, to our mighty mayor, to all of you, matthew, chapter 5. , hewhen he saw the crowds went up on a mountainside and sat down. his disciples came to him and he

began to teach them, saying, blsed e thpoor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. they will be filled. blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. ,lessed are the pure in heart for they will see god. blessed are the peacemakers, for

they will be called children of god. blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. , when peopleou insult you, persecute you, falsely say all kind of evil against you for me. rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in have been in for in the samy they persecuted the prophets before you. beloved, i believe jesus taught that to perceive the kingdom of heaven, you must see the

opposite. when you see a loss, see reward. when you hear a cry of pain, hear a prayer. when you see sacrifice, see a sacred offering. and to those of you who have suffered, in any type of suffering, wherever you might be, the lord is saying to you, never lose sight of your future. you who mourned, you will be comforted. you who are brokeou healed. you who have suffered loss, you rewarded.eporte the massachusetts license plate says the spirit of america. and i pray the world right now,

today, at this moment, will look at us and see the true spirit of america. >> cardinal schoenborn o'malley here in his own church, the cathedral of the holy cross. >> on behalf of our catholic community, i wish to welcome all of you here to the cathedral of the holy cross. it is an honor to have our president, our governor, and our mayor here with us this morning. we are so grateful to governor patrick for initiating this ecumenical prayer service. we are delighted that reverend

liz walker and all art many leaders from the various churches and faith communities could join us here today. our holy father from france has asked me to communicate to you his sentiments of love and support. the holy father invokes god's peace upon our dead, consolation upon the suffering, and god's strength upon all those engaged in the continuing work of relief and response. the holy father prays that we will be united in the resolve oo workingrcome evil, but together to build an ever more just, free,nd secure society for generations to come. year's patriots day celebrations were maed by an act of senseless vio of us greak and pain.

it has made us relive the horror of september 11 and is a stark reminder of the darkness that can work in the human heart and produced such evil. and yet the same tragedy has brought us together as a community like nothing else ever could. the generous and courageous response of so many assures us that there resides in people's hearts a goodness that is incredibly selfless. we saw that when summoned by great events, we can be remarkably committed to the well-being of others, even total strangers. we become a stronger people, and more courageous people, a more noble people. the police, emergency workers, even bystanders and passers-by did not hesitate to put themselves in harm's way to help the injured and the frightened. our presence here today is an

act of solidarity, first of all for those who lost their lives. we are so happy that krystle campbell's family is here in the cathedral with us. we are all so in solidarity with those injured in the explosions, and wish to express our desire to support them and their families and loved ones. this patriots day shakeus out of our complacency and indifference and calls on us to focus on the past, of building a civilization that is based on love and j.we do not want to rig the legacy of those first patriots who were willing to lay down their lives for the common good. we must overcome a holder of death -- the culture of death by promoting a culture of life, a profound respect for each and every human being made in the

image and likeness of god, and we must cultivate a desire to give our lives in the service of others. ont week i was in galilee the mouth of the beatitudes with 30 priests from boston on retreat. there we prayed and listen to the very gospel that was read for us here this morning. the sermon on the amount is a description of the life of the people gathered by and around the lord, often in the gospels we can see the contrast between the crowd and the community. the crowd is made up of self- absorbed individuals, each one focused on his or her own interest in competition with the conflicting projects of others. a community is where people come to value eachth, to find their own identity in part of something bigger than themselves, working together for

the sermon on t ain many ways is the constitution of the people called to live and . jesus gives a new way to deal with offenses, by reconciliation. jesus gives us a new way to deal with violence by nonviolence. he gives us a new way to deal with money, by sharing and providing for those in need. jesus gives us a new way of dealing with leadership by drawing upon the gives of every person, each won a child of god. in the face of the present tragedy, we must ask ourselves what kind of community do we want to be? water the ideals that we want to pass on to the next generation? it cannot be violent, hatred, and fear. the jewish people speak of repairing the world.

god has entrusted us with precisely that task, to prepare -- repair or broken world. we cannot do it as a collection of individuals. we can only do itethe as a community, as a family. like every tragedy, monday's events are a challenge and opportunity for us to work together with a renewed spirit of determination and solidarity, and with the firm conviction that love is stronger than death. may hours be the sentimentsf st. francis of assisi who prayed, lord, make me an .nstrument of your peace where there is hatred, let me sow love, where there is doubt, faith. where there is despair, hope. where there is darkness, like.

where there is sadness, joy. grant that may not so much seek to be consoled as to console, to be understood as to understand, to be loved as to love. for it is in giving that we received. it is in pardoning that we are pardoned, and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. amen.

♪

>> the governor of the commonwealth of massachusetts, deval patrick. >> in my faith tradition, scripture teaches in everything, give thanks. that is not always easy to do. on monday afternoon, i was not feg . wh felt, what so many of us

felt then, was shot in confusion the nature of faith i think is learning to return to the lessons, even when they don't make sense, when they defy logic. as i return to those lessons this week, i found a few things to be thankful for. i am thankful for the firefighters and police officers and the empty posture ran toward the blast, not knowing whether the attack was over -- and emt's who ran toward the attack, and the volunteers who helped write alongside. i am thankful for the medical professionals, from the doctors and trauma nurses and housekeeping staff, to the surgeons who finished the marathon and kept running to his operating room, all of whom perform to their very best. i am thankful for the agents from the fbi and atf, the

officers and state police, from the soldiers from the national guard and all other law enforcement personnel who both restored order and started the methodical work of piecing together what happened and who is responsible. meninoankful for mayor -- [applause] mayor katz menino started monday morning frustrated that he could not be at the finish line as he always did, and late that afternoon checked himself out of the hospital to help this city, our city, face down this tragedy. i am thankful for those who have given blood to the hospitals, money to the one fund, and

prayers and messages of consolation from all over the world. i am thank for the present and steadfast support of the president and first lady, our many former governors who are here. thank you. [applause] i am thankful for the other civic and political leaders who are here today, and for the many, many faith leaders who have ministered to us today and in the days since monday. i am thankful for the lives of krystle and lingzu and little mark, and for the families that survive them. and for the lives of all the people who are hurt and still woke up today with the hope for tomorrow. i am thankful, maybe most especially, for the countless nuers ofeoplen th iud

citynd historic commonwealth who, in the aftermath of such senseless violence, let their first instinct the kindness. in a dark hour, so many of you showed so many of us that darkness cannot drive out darkness, as dr. king said. only light can do that. towerry strange that the is unleashed on us should come on marathon day, on patriots day, a day that marks both the unofficial end of our long winter hibernation and the first battle of the american revolution. and just as we are taught at times like this not to lose touch with our spiritual faith, let us also not lose touch with our civic faith. massachusetts invented america.

[applause] america is not organized the way countries or usually organized. we are not organized around a common language or religion or even culture. we are organized around a handful of civic ideals, and we have def i those ideals over time and three struggleseqr ci rituals like the marathon, especially on patriots day, is an attack on those values. just as we cannot permit darkness and hate to triumph over our spiritual faith, so must we not permit darkness and hate to try for our civic faith.

that cannot happen, and it will not. [applause] so we will recover and repair. we will grieve over losses and healed. we will rise, and we will endure. we will have accountability without vengeance, vigilance without fear, and we will remember, i hope and pray, long after the buz of boylston street is back and the media has turned its attention elsewhere, that the grace this tragedy exposed is the best of who we are. fellow citizens, i am honoredblr

iendour leader, our commander in chief, the president of the united states. [applause] >> hello, boston. scripture tells us to run with endurance the race that is set before us.

run with endurance the race that is set before us. on monday morning, the sun rose over boston. the sunlight glistened off the state house dome. in the commons, in the public garden, spring was in bloom. on this patriot's day, likeo fanjumped onto the t to see tt uphopkinton, runners laced their shoes and set out on a 26.2-mile test of dedication and grit and the human spirit. hundredss this city,

of thousands bostonians lined the streets to hand the runners cups of water, to cheer them on. inwas a beautiful day to be boston, a day that explains why a poet once wrote that this town is not just a capital, not just a place. perfecthe said, is the [applause]race. and then, in an instant, the day's beauty was shattered. a celebration became a tragedy.

prayo we come together to and mourn and measure our loss. but we also come together today to reclaim that state of to reaffirm that the spirit of this city is undaunted and the spirit of the country shall remained undimmed. to governor patrick, mayor menino, cardinal o'malley and all the faith leaders who are here, governors romney, swift, weld and dukakis, members of congress, and most of all, the people of boston and the families who've lost a piece of your heart, we thank you for your leadership.

we thank you for your courage. we thank you for your grace. i'm here today on behalf of the american people with a simple message. every one of us has been touched by this attack on your beloved city. every one of us stands with you. because, after all, it's our beloved city, too. boston may be your hometown but we claim it, too. it's one of america's iconic cities

it's one of the world's great cities. and one of the reasons, the world knows boston so well is that boston opens its heart to the world. over successive generations, you've welcomed again and again new arrivals to our shores; immigrants who constantly reinvigorated this city and this commonwealth and our nation. every fall, you welcome students from all across america and all across the globe. and every spring, you graduate them back into the world -- a boston diaspora that excels in every field of human endeavor. year after year, you welcome the greatest talents in the arts, in science, research. you welcome them to your concert halls and your hospitals your laboratories to exchange ideas and insights that draw this world together.

and every third monday in april, you welcome people from all around the world to the hub friendship and fellowship andtitierg men and women of evcend eve religion, and y ery size -- a multitude represented by all those flags that flew over the finish line. so whether folks come here to boston for just a day or whether they stay here for years, they leave with a piece of this town tucked firmly into their hearts. your home town, but

we claim it a little bit, too. [applause] i know this because there is a piece of boston in me. it welcomed me as a young law student across the river. you welcomed michelle, too. [applause] you welcomed me during a convention when i was still a state senator and very few people could pronounce my name right. ou and i have walked the streets. like you, we know these neighborhoods. and like you, in this moment of grief, we join you in saying,

boston, you are my home. for millions of us, what happened on monday is personal. it is personal. prayers are with the campbell family of medford. they are here today. wasr daughter krystle always smiling. those who knew her said that with her red hair and her eageres and hurt ever willingness to speak her mind, she was beautiful. sometimes she could be a little noisy. and everybody loved her for it. she would have turned up 30 next month. as her mother said through her tears, this doesn't make any

sense. are with see lu family of china, who sent their daughter lungzu so she could experience all this city had to offer. she was a 23-year-old student, far from home, and in the of her family and friends, we are reminded of all share. our prayers are with the richard andly of dorchester, denise her young daughter jane as they fight to recover, and are hearts are broken 48-year-old martin, with his big smile and bright eyes -- for 8-year-old martin.

his last hours were as perfect as an 8-year-old boy could hope , eating ices family cream at a sporting event. and we are left with two enduring images of this little boy, forever smiling for his beloved bruins and for -- forever expressing a wish he made on a bloop poster board. no more hurting people. . no more hurting people. peace. our prayers with the injured, so many wounomeded, s avel. from their bed som a surel watcngthedere today,

and if you are, know this. as you begin this long journey of recovery, your city is with you. your commonwealth is with you. your country is with you. we will all be with you as you learn to stand and walk and yes, run again. of that i have no doubt, you will run again. [applause] again.l run because that is what the people of boston are made of. your resolve is the greatest rebuke to whoever committed this heinous act. if they thought to intimidate us, to terrorize us, to shake us devalhose values that

scribe, the values that make us who we are as americans, it should be pretty clear right now that they picked the wrong city to do it. [applause] not here in boston. not here in boston. you have shown us, boston, that in the face of evil, americans will lift up what is good. cruelty, we will

choose compassion. in the face of those who would visit death upon innocence, we will choose to save and to .omfort and to heal we will choose friendship. we will choose love. , god has teaches us not gi us or -- timidity, but a power love and self discipline. at is therit you have when docrs and nurses, police and firefighters emt's and

guardsmen run toward explosions to treat the wounded, that is discipline. runners,usted including some of our troops and veterans could never have expected to see such carnage on the street back home, become first responders themselves tending to the injured, that is real power. when bostonians carry victims in their arms, bring them water and blankets, lined up to give blood, open their homes to total strangers, give them rides back to reunite with their families, that is love. tot is the message we send those who carried this out and anyone who would do harm to our

people. , and yes,ll find you you will face justice. [applause] we will find you. we will hold you accountable, but more than that, our fidelity to our way of life, to our free and open society, will only grow rong. for god has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but one of power, love, and self discipline. old, the, 78 years runner in the orange tank top

who we all saw get knocked down by the blast. we may be momentarily knocked off our feet, but we will pick ourselves up. we will keep going. we will finish the race. [applause] in the words of dick hoyt, who has pushed his disabled son rick in 31 boston marathons, we cannot let something like this stop us. this does not stop us. us, is what you taught boston. that is what you are reminded us. persevere, to not even when it hurts,

even when our heart aches, we summon the strength that maybe we did not even know we had, and we carry on. we finished the race. , and we dohe race that because of who we are. and we do that because we know that somewhere aune bd, a stranger has a cup of water. around the bend, somebody is there to boost our spirits. on that toughest mile, just when hit the that we have wall, someone will be there to cheer us on and pick us up if we fall. we know that.

[applause] that is what the perpetrators of such senseless violence, these small, stunted individuals who would destroy instead of build and thinks somehow that makes them important -- that is what they don't understand. our faith in each other, our love for each other, our love for country, our common creed thatuts across whatever superficial differences there ma b tt is our power. that is our strength. that is why obama cannot beat us. cannot beat us. that is why we don't hunt down. we don't cower in fear. we carry on. we race.

we strive. we build and rework and we love and we raise our kids to do the same, and we come together to celebrate life and to walk our cities and to cheer our team, celtics and and patriots and bruins are champions again, the crowd will gather and watch a parade go down boylston street, and this time next year, on the third monday in april, the world will return to this great american city to run harder than ever and to cheer even louder for the 118th boston marathon. [applause]

tomorrow, the sun will rise over boston. tomorrow, the sun will rise over this country that we love. this special place, this state of grace. scripture tells us to run with endurance the race that is set before us. hold closeay god those who have been taken from us too soon. may he comfort their families, and may he continue to watch over these united states of

america. [applause] andords of comfort encouragement from the president of the united states, barack obama. >> come to the conclusion of our per se service this morning, just a reminder to everyone here in the cathedral to remain in their places until the president and mrs. obama have securely and exited the building. i would like to invite you to kindly stand out for are concluding blessing.

>> the lord be with you. let us pray. made the lord preserved you are going for it and you are coming end. may the lord bless you and protect you. met lord smile on you and be gracious to you. may the lord show you his favor and give you his peace. amen. ♪ 0 beautiful for spacious skies

or ptain majesties grain above the fruited plain america god shed his grace on thee and crown my good with brotherhood from sea to shining sea o beautiful for pilgrim feet hose stern impassioned stress beatroughfare of freedom across teh wilderness

america, but there are -- america god meant it 9 every flaw confirmed by seoul in self- control. by liberty in law zero beautiful for heroes proved and liberating strife self their country loved and mercy more than li it via gold refined tell all success be noble less ivine ♪ y gain devin

the concluding song, "america the beautiful." joined by the boston children's chorus, as the president and the first lady, the governor and his wife, the mayor of the city of boston, leave the cathedral of the holocaust, we thank you for joining or